Harry Potter and the Lost Isle of Deidre
by Nothlak
Summary: Harry meets up with an old foe of Godric Gryffindor, who just happens to be a Hobgoblin. A story of Harry, Ginny, Ron and Hermione, with a few other supporting chararcters. This happens after book 7, but written before HBP.
1. Introduction and Chapter 1

Disclaimer – I don't own any of the main characters, just a couple of my own, and I'm not aiming for any monetary reward, etc, etc. I am just a fan of Harry Potter with a little time and a lot of imagination   
  
Harry Potter and the Lost Isle of Deidre  
  
Introduction  
  
June 2nd, 1999

Somewhere north of Scotland, between the Outer Islands and Faroe Islands lays a rocky island no larger then 5 miles in diameter. On a closer inspection, the island is dotted with small villages, mostly facing south, using wall barriers to stop the cold wind from the Arctic Ocean from blowing over the huts. In the centre of one of the larger villages lies a small ziggurat. A shield surrounds the island; it cannot be seen nor can anyone get to it. Within the ziggurat, a humanoid creature dressed as a wizard approaches a large double door. A soft knock can be heard.

"Master, I have news from the House of Knowledge."

The door slowly opens by itself, making the Hobgoblin swallow nervously before gathering his robe and advancing into the chamber. The chamber is dimly lit, as Hobgoblins prefer darkness to bright lights. Able to see in the night as well as a human can during the day, they only use lights to help them read the delicate writings found in wizard tomes and scrolls. They use spells to help them cope with daylight when they need to.  
  
Hobgoblins are an old race, a mixture of both the Elves and the Goblins, slightly larger then both (about 5 feet tall). Unlike Elves who have a good-natured tendency, Hobgoblins are evil, but are as cunning as the Goblins. They do not have the magical prowess of Elves, as they require wands to channel their magic. Their wands though are not manufactured like those used by Human wizards, but come from the Tree of Death, resembling a massive black Willow tree. A ceremony is held for all young Hobgoblins once they reach a certain age; they are to drink the sap from the tree. The tree decides through its own mysterious ways who becomes a wizard or who doesn't. The tree ensures the Hobgoblin's dark nature is untouched by goodness: it is believed the tree's sap will kill anyone with a good heart.  
  
During the war in 906 AD, a force of Elves, Goblins and Humans defeated the Hobgoblin invasion of Scotland. The survivors were then placed on an island of the Northern coast of Scotland. The Island was then enchanted so that once the enchantment was cast, no one would be able to find the Island, and that the residence of the Island would not be able to leave. Over time, the knowledge of this race diminished, to the point that only the old scrolls talk about this mysterious race.  
  
"And what, pray tell, have they discovered?"

"They believe, once again, that they have found a way to dispel the magic that binds us to this cursed island. It is believed that on 31st day of the 7th month of this year, the Black Moon will weaken the barrier enough so we may prepare the dispelling chant."

"That would only leave us with less then two months to prepare."

"I am sorry master"

"It is not your fault. Summon the heads of all houses. There is to be a meeting of the full council in one week's time. Ensure everyone attends, as they will need time to prepare for the ceremony. Also, summon my steward, as I would like to go visit the Lord Gryde of the House of Knowledge and ensure he is right."

"Master, do you also intend to invite the House of Blood? The last time he was here he threatened your life and killed half your guards before we managed to drive him out of the village. You have not spoken to him in almost thirty years."

"He is still my brother, the only blood I have left. He will see the reason for this meeting. The ceremony cannot go forth without all the heads for the chant. He has as much right to leave as anyone else, and he is still the war General. Once we leave the Island, it is he that will lead us to the victory we so dearly deserved."

"As you wish, Master"  
  
Once the word of their impending freedom was announced, the villages on the south side of the Island became as busy as a mound of ants. Although not able to go further then one quarter of a mile out, the Hobgoblins had maintained the ships used to send them to the island. Capable of carrying 300 passengers, each was originally designed to only last until the ship reached the island. Knowing this, the leader of the Hobgoblins enchanted a bay to receive all the ships, but never actually "reaching" the island, the ships maintained their magic. All twenty ships were now being prepared for their first journey in over a millennium.

Chapter One  
To the Field we go  
  
Somewhere in the rolling hills of England, sits an old manor with half of its walls falling apart, destroyed by time and weather. This manor sits at the top of hill looking over a small village, Godric Hollow, but yet separated by sheer walls of rock and impassable terrain. No road leads to the keep, yet even thrill seekers do not attempt the climb, as if disturbing the area would be very bad. As dawn creeps up into the valley, red, then gold light fills it with light. If anyone had approached the manor, they would witness something that only recently started to happen, they would notice that a light has come on in one of the windows of one the only standing towers; before this recent event, a light has not gone on in the manor in over twenty years when a pair of Marauders used to come and camp out. Inside the keep, a young man is seen putting on his glasses and getting out of bed. He dresses in loose robes and tries to fix his hair, which does not want to cooperate. Pop!

"Morning Dobby."

"Morning Master Harry."

"Just Harry Dobby, just Harry."

"Yes Master Harry."

The smell of bacon was starting to make its way to the only livable room in the manor. Quidditch Supplies, books of all sizes, and pictures of people, all sleeping made up most of the bedroom. A desk in the corner barely able to contain containing scrolls and tomes. A pair of comfortable reading chairs sat beside a large fireplace, that now lay dormant

"That's starting to smell good this morning."

"Yes Master Harry, Master Ron and Miss Hermione said they would come and make sure you are out of bed this morning. And Master Ron is always hungry"

"That is so." As they both make their way down an old staircase, the size of the manor became awe-inspiring. Before the manor started to deteriorate, it could easily host a party of 200 in the grand ballroom alone and had 20 luxurious rooms for its guests, plus sleeping quarters for their retinue. Of course now, both residents had to watch their step to ensure they did fall through the damaged grand staircase. Harry preferred walking down to the dinning area instead of Apparating, as it allowed him a better respect of the intricacies his ancestral home. As they reached the main floor, pigeons took to the air and flew out the whole in the roof.

"We'll have to fix that again, Dobby"

"Yes Mater Harry, I will fix it today."

"No, you said you'd come out to the game today. I want you there. God knows you deserve a break more then anyone else."

"Who deserves a break?" A tall, red haired friend, eating what looks like bacon and toast sandwich has walked in. Following him in is a young lady with intense eyes and bushy long hair.

Harry looks at Ron and asks: "Hey guys, why don't you join me for breakfast?"

"Thanks mate, don't mind if we do."

"So, are you nervous?" asked Hermione

"Hermione, I am leader of the Order of the Phoenix, I helped capture and destroy most of the Death-Eaters and their allies, and... oh let me think, killed the most powerful Dark Lord to have ever existed. I think that I can handle a little game of Quidditch."

Ron's eyes almost popped out of their sockets, "Harry, this is the first time the Cannons have made it to the final in a really, really long time."

"I know Ron, I have the bumps and bruises to prove it. For once I would like to catch the snitch without ending up in the in the infirmary, or even at St-Mungo's like last game."

"But Harry, that was the most radical catch you've ever made. Of course falling of your broom from 60 feet up might not help, but at least you never let go of the Snitch."

"Whatever. Actually now that you're here Hermione, could you look at something for me. We found a secret door in the "lower" levels and we can't seem to open it. Not even with Dobby's help. There are old runes inscribed in the door and I thought who better to help me out then the Ministry's best Rune de-coder"

"Stop it Harry, or I'll tell Ginny you're flirting with me."

With that comment, the group gets up to leave. As Dobby begins to clean up the mess, Hermione leaves him a pair of socks hidden between the jug of pumkin juice and a pot of porridge as the group heads to the door to go down to the next level. Dobby finds the socks and smiles to himself as he put the socks in one of many pockets.

If the above looks like a disaster, the lower levels are even worse. Mildew and water can be seen on the walls, and the air is so stuffy, it feels like no one had been down here in over a century. The curving stairs go lower and lower. "Lumos Corridas" and the torches along the corridor started to burn making the shadows that more pronounced.

"This place is creepy, Harry."

"Ron, if you want, you can stay upstairs and help Dobby clean up. It appears part of the roof we fixed last week has caved in again."

Ron mumbles something about not looking for danger anymore. They pass a few corridors leading in different directions. They come up to a blank stonewall. Harry taps his wand on the wall three times. A stone door appears with Runes engraved in it.

"Wow, this is pretty old Harry,"

Herminione approaches but does not touch the wall. She mumbles an incantation to detect minor details, like age and material.

"This is very old, I would even say even older then your manor; and by the looks of this level, the house was built right on top of it. There is no way I could decipher this quickly, but if you don't mind, I'll make a copy of the runes and do some research."

"Blimey, we're supposed to be off today. I didn't beg to get the day off so that we would have to work."

"Ron, first of all you didn't take the day off, as you put it. You work for the Ministry of Sports and you are expected to be at the game. Secondly, I wouldn't dream of asking you to lift another book, let alone get you to read it."

Hermione proceeded with her copying spell and fifteen minutes later, they were heading back upstairs.

"Now that was interesting. Harry if you don't mind, I have some time before the game and I want to go to the ministry and look up some books to help me decipher these ruins. By hon, see you at the game." She kisses Ron and disparates out.

"Can you believe it, any chance to get out of work and go read some old volumes? So what do you want to do for now?"

"Well, maybe we can get this place cleaned up a bit more before we need to leave. I want to stop by Hogwarts and get Ginny. Neville and Luna were going to, as well as Remus and few others."

"Not Professor Snape I hope!"

"Ron, Professor Snape is one of the reasons we won the war. He is a trusted 'friend', and a member of the inner circle. Of course I'm not sure he'll be there, but if so, you had better nice."

"Whatever."

"Now, Wood wants me there for eleven I think, although I'm sure he's been there since dawn knowing him." Both laughed at this, remembering the days at Hogwarts, "so I say we should leave by 10:30. This should give us a few hours"

Both men proceeded to cast levitation spells, strengthening spells, and cleaning spells, and soon the main entrance looked less like a war zone and more like a great room. At 10:30, Dobby came in and told Harry the time.

"Well Ron, you'd better go get Hermione before she forgets. I am going to go get your sister."

"Remember Harry, we set up a zone outside the normal area for the athletes so that you don't get hassled. I'll meet you there."

Both lads Disparated their separate ways. Harry arrived in Hogsmeade and started the walk up to Hogwarts. A year ago, he would have been able to Apparate within the school, but those days, and those powers were gone, or at least dormant. It was funny to have the knowledge on how to do things, but not be able to do it. Of course, the benefit of walking is such that he is able to see the new construction that was going on the school, which was almost complete. Although a good portion was destroyed in the battle last year, it did not take long to get the rebuilding started on the school; the hard part was to rebuild the memories of those lost. Due to the construction, only those going into their fifth year or higher were allowed to return to Hogwarts. One thing that hadn't been seen since the Sirius Black incident in Harry's third year was the students sharing a common room, where due to damages suffered to both Hufflepuff and Gryffendor common rooms, those students bunked up with Ravenclaw and Slitherin until later in the school year when construction repaired the two common rooms. Many felt that the bonding allowed many of the students to cope with what had happened the year before. Some of the younger students were able to find private tutors, or even acceptance to Beauxbaton in France on a special exchange program.

As he approached the front entrance, he could tell that the protective wards surrounding the school had been enhanced, with the help of the teachers, some of the students (former and present), and the Centaurs from the Forbidden Forest. As Harry entered the front entrance, memories came flooding back, and to top it off, an old all too familiar voice

"Mister Potter, what are you doing here?" Filch, one of the only persons in Hogwarts Harry had not gone out of his way to save last year, but had still managed to survive.

"Hello Mister Filch, I am here to meet some friends and pick up my girlfriend", replied Harry with steel in his eyes and grit in his voice. Before Filch could reply, "Mister Potter, how good to see you again"

"Hello Headmistress McGonagall, you are looking lovely today."

"That will be all Filch. Mister Potter is always welcomed to Hogwarts."

Filch leaves with Mrs. Norris at his heals. "Miss Weasley and Miss Lovegood are still writing exams, but should be done soon. If you want to join me in my office, Mister Longbottom is they're waiting also. His students last exams were yesterday."

"Don't you mean Professor?"

With a tight-lipped smile she responded, "Yes, I keep forgetting. He is such a good teacher. Madam Sprout could not have chosen a better replacement. He will be ready to teach all levels when school starts up in September."

As both made their way to her office, Harry could see the pictures waiving to him, offering him everything from a drink of wine, leg of lamb, and even a marriage proposal from a shy ghost.

"Hello Myrtle, how are you today?"

"Better now that you're here" she said with girlish giggles. And just like that, she was off towards her bathroom. Harry and McGonagall make it to the office where Neville was sitting, talking to a picture of Dumbledore.

"Hello Harry, how are you? It has been a while since we last chatted. " asked Dumbledore without his normal twinkle; it appears the painter could not capture one of his special quality. "Fine Sir, I am sorry if I haven't put up your painting yet, but I don't know where to put it. The house is still a mess, and well, I know Fawkes is looking forward to seeing you, although he has been gone for over four months now..." The sadness in his voice makes everyone think back to that dreadful time when Dumbledore fell and did not rise after being attacked by Lord Voldemort.

"Now Harry, we talked about this, it was the only way; It was my time to go. I am just glad that you and your friends survived, and that Hogwarts will still be around to teach the next generation. Now I must be off, it appears that someone is looking for a partner to play a game of Wizard Chess. And if I'm not mistaken, you have a big day today. Just be careful."

As Dumbledore left, the three of them sat around quietly with their own thoughts until they could hear voices coming up the winding staircase.

"I told you she would be done first. I think that is now 2 Galleons you owe me Snape?" As both teachers enter the office, it appears that that both are now sharing a good laugh. Remus notices Harry, "Harry, how are you?"

"Fine Remus, and how are you professor Snape?" Harry got up and went over and shook hands with both professors; Remus shook his hand then pulled him into a very fatherly embrace. Harry notices that the end of the war has also help end the friction that existed between Remus and Snape. Actually, seeing Snape smile was not the prettiest thing to see, but it was better then his scowl. It would take Harry, and probably a few of the students some time to forget how Snape used to make everyone feel on edge.

"Harry, Ginny is gone to the common room to get here stuff, Luna is not far behind her too, 'Professor' Longbottom. Why don't you gents go help them with their stuff and we will meet at the main hall and we can all leave together. Minerva, could you prepare a Portkey for the group?"

With that, both lads ran out of the room. Remus smiled as he got out of the way, "young love." Minerva and Snape both smiled.

"Harry" asked Neville, "Have you asked Ginny yet. I mean she hasn't said a word, and since I didn't teach her Herbology this year, and since I don't get the opportunity to see her as often; it doesn't look good when a teacher mingles too much with the students, I was wondering what was going on. Just being curious."

"Of course not, I am waiting for the right time. I promised her parents I would not let my intentions befuddle her studying until she finished school."

"But Harry, she's done now. What do you plan to do about it?"

"Oh, I never thought of that." The smallest hint of smile could be seen.

"See you in a few minutes" as Neville headed towards the Ravenclaw common room.

Harry arrived at the Griffendor common room and was about to speak the password, but he did not have the password.

"Hello Mister Potter, what can I do for you?"

"I need to get in."

"And the password is.....?"

"I don't know, but you know who I am, so please."

It was at that time that the little Knight ran into the painting, a little winded, and winked at Harry, and whispered "Luscious Apple Pie". The Fat Lady blushed a little and walked away with the Knight arm in arm as the door swung open. Harry smiled and shook his head as he walked in. The room was half full of students getting ready for exams, or letting steam off from finishing exams. As he stepped in, the room grew quiet, and then the applause started. Colin Creevey could be heard yelling and hooting with his brother at his side. Most people came to him to either thank him, to wish him good luck, (another couple of marriage proposals from a pair of 5th year students), or just to say that school was not the same without him.

"HARRY POTTER!"

There was no mistaking who's voice that was, and as the crowd parted, Harry could see Ginny standing there, her trunk floating behind her, and tears of joy coming down her cheek. She ran too him and tackled him to the ground, the trunk falling to the ground with a loud 'thunk'. She kissed him, he kissed her, and they kept kissing, and kissing. Soon, the stares turned into little giggles as people looked away to give them a bit of privacy.

"Why were you not there when I finished?"

"Minerva thought it would be best if I didn't disrupt the class. Now come on, we need to leave. Let's take care of your trunk."

With a flick of his wand, the trunk shrank and Harry placed it in one of his pockets. As they left hand in hand, the crowd in the common room all wished the couple a lot of luck. They hurried to the front hall to meet up with the rest of their fellow friends, and with a tap of rope, all of them were transported to an open field.

As they arrived and were recognized, a congregation of reporters, photographers, groupies, and fans all rushed to the newly arrived group. Harry grabbed Ginny's hand and whispered for her to follow. "Good luck Harry", yelled Neville, as he started to lead the group away from the rush and towards the entry gate. Harry and Ginny Disparated and reappeared on the other side of the pitch where no crowd could be spotted. There, they saw Ron and Hermione, kissing very passionately, with Ron's hands gropping her backside.

"Excuse me, but maybe you can continue this a later time."

Ron and Hermione broke off, both competing to see who would blush the most; Ron won.

"Sorry mate, but well, I can't stop myself, she drives me crazy."

"Oh pleassssse," said Ginny. "Get a room instead."

"Ron, let's get in before they figure out where I've gone to."

The group of friends entered a small entrance and headed down a tunnel leading towards the field. After about 100 feet, the tunnel forked.

"Ok Mate, you go that way; it will lead you to the change rooms. Be careful, Oliver has been here for a while and is a little upset that rest of the team weren't here at the same time. Oh, and even though I now have to be partial due to work" his eyes looking around to make sure there was nobody "kick their arses".

"Ronald Weasley, your mother would wash your mouth with toad sludge if she heard you say that. Good luck Harry." With a hug and kiss on the cheek, both Hermione and Ron left for the private box of the Minister of Magic.

"Good luck Harry, and please don't break anything too important." Then she kissed him very passionately, squeezing his butt with both hands, just like Ron was doing to Hermione.

"Ginny, don't start something you know I can't stop." He tried to return the kiss and the grope, but she spun around and ran up the stairs, following her brother and Hermione, blowing him a kiss and sending him a wink, "save it for after the game".

When she got there, all her friends and family were there, wearing the Chudley Orange. Molly immediately hugged her daughter very tightly. The Twins were there, throwing Wizbangs, which exploded over everyone into a multitude of sparklers, which then turned into a multitude of candy. Of course, the recipient of the candy didn't realize that once you consumed the candy, that your skin would turn orange. She was joined by both Bill and Fleur, Charlie, her father and mother, Fred and George of course with Angelina and Katie, Ron and Hermione, and sitting in the corner Dobby, who had the most garrish orange costume and a flag of Harry in his hand.

"Fred, George, stop that now or you'll embarrass your father."

"Sorry mum" The pitiful look they gave her made everyone else laugh, especially since they had partaken of their own candy, and were as orange as the rest of them. Everyone, including Arthur, had a skin colour of a ripe orange. Butterbeer was already being distributed amonst the group of friends, and even a little Firewhiskey which appeared out of thin air. In the distance, they could see the group from Hogwarts were making there way to the box.

Down in the locker, Oliver was pacing, hands behind his back. As Harry walked in, he spun around and faced his starting Seeker.

"How nice of you to show up today Mister Potter. I was afraid that you might have forgotten that today was the FINALS! Now why don't you go change while the rest of us just waits here a little longer."

Harry looked sheepishly at his feet, and shuffled of to change. Once done, he went back and joined the rest of group, sitting quietly in the corner. Oliver then spoke up. "Now the last time we played Puddlemere, we won, but we did it too quickly. We never got a chance to really test ourselves against them. I mean it's not Harry's fault that the Snitch came out early, but..."

Angelina broke in, "Oliver, what are you complaining about, we won the game and it was like so cold out there that even our warming spells did not work."

Oliver slammed his hand against the table, "We might have beaten them then, but we have no idea how good they really are right now. With the way the press is covering our team, we could not practice in peace. We have no secret moves that people don't already know of. Heck, Puddlemere didn't even need to see any of our games due to all the coverage they could get for free..." This continued until the referee came in and told them they had the pitch to warm up for 30 minutes. The group went out and warmed up. The only thing that could be seen was a see of yellow and orange. The crowd was chanting 'Harry! Harry!' The warm up ended and they flew back into the change room. A few minutes went by when the announcer came on, "Ladies and gentlemen welcome to tonight's final match up, Chudley vs Puddlemere. Now here are your Cannons: Captain Oliver Wood..." As Oliver got ready to go, he turned to his fellow team and said, "let's get out there and win, and Harry, catch that Snitch, or die trying." With a smile, he turned around and slew off, the rest of the team following right behind.


	2. Ron and Hermione

Chapter 2

Ron and Hermione  
  
The sun was just beginning to rise at 12 Grimmauld place, in London. Although the house could not be seen from the outside, the inside started to fill up nicely with golden sunlight. A milkman had just delivered milk to both neighbors without even noticing a house was in between. Since Harry took over his ancestral home, he had decided to sell the deed to the house to both Ron and Hermione for 1 Galleon; Ron and Hermione had refused profusely, but Harry didn't need the money, and he felt it was better for someone to use the house then for it to fall on hard times, like when Sirius had been imprisoned. He had also made them promise that they would always make it available for the Order of the Phoenix; when put in those terms, both Ron and Hermione felt honored to host any meeting and would ensure that they would always be ready. The house was starting to look well lived in, to the point that it was getting a woman's touch that it so badly needed. Of course, books of all sizes could be seen crammed in every nook and cranny. When Ron and Hermione signed the deed, Harry gave them a welcome gift of a large magical shelving unit that would constantly rearrange the books in the users preference: Title, Author, or Subject matter. As a joke, he had also given Ron what looked like a Nimbus 2005, but when Ron went to push off the floor, it didn't work and Ron fell to the ground in a heap. Laughing, Harry just said, "Ron, that is just a replica, it actually is for sweeping; you'll need it to keep this place looking spiffy. I'm not sure Hermione would take to having too much dust all over her books." When everyone but Ron laughed at this joke, Harry removed the Hex that prevented the broom from flying. It wasn't long before Hermione put up the first house rule- 'No Flying in the House'.

Remus had just moved out when Harry presented the offer to Ron and Hermione, since taking over the teaching position of DADA at Hogwarts, and becoming the head of Gryffindor meant he now slept at the castle. Harry did make it a point to Remus that he would always be welcomed at his home in Godric Hollow, as he was the closest thing to family, other then the Weasleys, that he had. But, as Remus put it jokingly, he would first have to build his own room just to be able to live there.   
  
That morning, Hermione was the first to wake; since no one could see inside the home, they never really bothered with curtains, so they always woke early. She shook Ron to tell him to get up, and then made her way to the bathroom for a quick shower. Once she was done, she again went to Ron to get him up, and as usual he just rolled over and went back to sleep. Since they had promised Harry they would be over at first light, she just levitated Ron, still in his pajamas, and brought him in the shower, where she let him take a nice cold shower.  
  
"What the heck did you do that for? I was getting up."  
  
"Well, now your up and you have five minutes before we need to leave, so move it."  
  
Hermione went back to the bedroom and cleaned up the mess they had made last night. It was becoming a habit of theirs to practice dueling before going to bed. It helped keep them on their toes, "constant vigilance" as Moody always put it. The other effect was it really, really got them in the mood for sex, with all the adrenaline pumping, and the thrill of the hunt. Sometimes they used the whole house to play hide and seek, with the winner usually taking advantage of the others plight. Last night, they had kept it to just the bedroom, but she had to repair a few holes in the walls. Ron had cast a Marble Mouth Hex on her, which prevented proper pronunciation of her words. She tried removing it with the reverse, but somehow had cast a blasting charm instead. Thankfully, Ron had been quick enough to dodge out of the way. He then cast a full body bind on her, just to stop her from causing more damage. He was proceeding to remove the hex, but decided to have fun instead. She was powerless to stop him, and whenever she was close to breaking the Hex, he would cast a tickling charm on her just to break her concentration. This lasted through to the early morning before they both finally went to sleep. Now that she thought about it, no wonder they were tired.  
  
As Hermione started to take robes out for her and Ron, she was looking at the different emblems each had. Ron now worked for the Ministry of Sports, and his main responsibility was ensuring the smooth running of everything related to Quidditch. He was always nervous the night before a big match. She remembered during the semis between Puddlemere and the Tornados that since she was not available for their usual sexual romp the night before, he had convinced Harry to go out on the town with him. They hooked up with both Fred and George and literally painted the town red. The muggle police thought university graduates had done the prank, but since no one caught them, they thought they had gotten off. The problem for them was that Hermione still got her newsprint from the muggle world and found out, so when she confronted Ron about the fact that some of his robes had red paint on them, Ron broke down and confessed everything to her. He had not been allowed out for three days upon threat of her telling his mother. She had also told Angelina, Katie and Ginny, but they had turned around and were upset with their men for not allowing them to come along with them. In a huff, Hermione left them, mumbling to herself that next time she will just go to Molly instead.  
  
Like Ron, Hermione had not changed much after graduating last year. As she is the most organized, it did not take her long to discover that a rune breaker, or de-coder as Harry liked to put it, was her choice of fields. She had been accepted right away, passing all the given tests. Before the summer had been out, she had joined the Ministry of Magic as an apprentice, and within 6 months became a full-fledged member, completing the course in half the time required. She now spends most of her time deciphering Runes, going through the Ministry's library books like a kid at the candy store, as its collection far surpassed what Hogwarts carried.  
  
After graduation, Ron and Hermione moved in together without a second thought, although both hers and Ron's parents did not think it was a good idea without first being married. Ron had never broached the subject about marriage, and Hermione herself was not sure. She still found Ron to be a little immature as he still got bouts of jealousy over Harry, and so Hermione decided that they, as couple, were not ready for the commitment, although she loved the sleeping together aspect; Ron had been her first and only lover, and though she had wondered how it would have been with Harry, since Ginny could not stop talking about him and his 'unending stamina', she knew that she had found her soul mate. Like the saying goes, "opposites attract"; you could not have two more different characters. Hermione had always been limited to using her head and and rarely used her 'gut instinct', while Ron almost never used his head. They both loved each other very much, which was evident during the war when, during the first wave of the final battle, both had risked their lives to save each other.  
  
Ron was actually one of the first to discover the attack while he was in the Gryffindor common room getting ready to leave. He had seen Giants approaching the castle from the Forbidden Forest, and with instinct driving him, shouted the alarm, and ran to their dormitories. Once there, he grabbed his broom and Harry's invisibility cloak and took off towards the fight. While flying as fast as he could and trying to keep the cloak on, he noticed that Ginny, Hermione, Neville and Luna had started to gather up the defenses and get as many of the younger students back to Hogwarts. Both Ginny and Neville, who had been Harry's best students, were really causing trouble for the first wave of Death Eaters; it was up to Ron to charge the Giants. Although his magic was not strong enough to drop a full giant, it was enough to distract them enough to allow everyone to retreat to the school. During the retreat, Hermione was hit with a stunning spell and dropped behind the group unnoticed. Seeing this, Ron raced to interpose himself between the approaching Death Eaters and Hermione, getting hit by a laceration spell and by an exploding hex. Right before passing out from the pain and blood lost, he cast 'Enervate' to get Hermione up. Once Hermione saw Ron down and bleeding profusely, she went ballistic, casting spells faster then anyone had seen in a long time. She simultaneously kept two Death Eaters at bay, managed to actually stun a Giant, and levitated Ron to safety. When the group finally managed to get Hermione and Ron behind the defensive line, Hermione collapsed to her knees and, seeing that Ron was dying from his wounds, cast the Soul Transfer spell, which, if cast successfully, would transfer a bit of her life essence to help keep Ron alive; the downside was that often times the caster died, or at the very least shortened their life span. No one but her and Harry, who had figured it out later on, knew what had happened. After she had cast the spell, she fell unconscious and only awoke when Harry came and healed everyone in the group to prepare for the second wave of the assault. She had made Harry swear that he would never reveal that information to anyone, as she did not want Ron to find out. A few days after the battle, she noticed a scar over her heart, marking the path that her life essence passed to reach Ron; Ron had questioned her about it, saying he had never seen it before, but she just replied it must have been from a spell. That is what she was rubbing when Ron stepped out of the shower.  
  
"I see your ready for another round", Ron said with a smiled as he noticed her rubbing herself, not really noticing that she was rubbing the mark over her heart, and not her breasts. He whipped out his wand and prepared to cast. Quicker then the eye could see, Hermione tackled Ron to the ground, leaving him with no choice but to enjoy the ride. Ten minutes later, both were satisfied (for now) and hungry, so they Disparated to Harry's place.

They arrived in the kitchen, as it was the safest place to arrive other than Harry's room. Two months ago, they decided to drop in on Harry to see if he would join them for lunch, as they knew he was home, and appeared right into his bedroom, as they had done in the past, only to discover that he was not alone. It appeared that Ginny decided to take her Hogsmeade pass and go see Harry, since they had not seen each other since Valentines Day. Ron went ballistic when he saw his sister and Harry having sex, but before he could do anything stupid, Ginny stunned him and Hermione, apologizing profusely (noted the new position they were using), and took him home. It took Hermione two days to get Ron to snap out of it, reminding him that they themselves were sleeping together and that Ginny was of age.  
  
Harry's kitchen was probably as big as the main level to Grimmauld place. It was big enough to rival Hogwarts own kitchen, although only Dobby, and even sometimes Harry, ever cooked in it. Harry had discovered the joys of cooking since it was not for his Uncle, Aunt, and cousin; at first it annoyed Dobby, but later gave up and just enjoyed being in the company of Harry. Harry had actually cooked the Valentine's dinner for Ginny and himself. When they arrived, they found that breakfast had been cooked, but that their host was not present; sitting on the kitchen table was a steaming platter of bacon just removed from the pan with a fresh stack of toast, porridge and eggs, with pumpkin juice, tea and coffee. Without thinking, Ron strolled over and made himself a quick sandwich.  
  
"Ron, what are you doing? Its not polite to start eating without our host."

"Hermione, were talking about Harry, he won't mind. Actually, were is he?"  
  
"I'm not sure, let's go announce ourselves."  
  
As they left the kitchen, they saw Harry and Dobby descending the stairs carefully as to not end up falling through one the many holes. Hermione still had problems adjusting to the size of the place. Although the place was a disaster, with what appeared to be a new hole in the roof, she could see the brilliance of the details that had been put in to the original construction. She knew that once Ginny moved in, that they would get the place rebuilt quickly. Although Ron was surprised that Harry did not hire anyone to help with the rebuilding, Hermione knew that Harry had his own personal reasons; it was as if the building represented a new phase in his life, and that he wanted to share it with only his closest friends. Upon seeing them, Harry invited them to join him for breakfast, smiling at the fact that Ron had started without them. Both Harry and Ron discussed Quidditch, what they should expect next year, and other 'manly' things as Hermione liked to put it. Hermione remembered when her dad would have his friends over and they would start talking about cars, golf and fishing, and her mom would politely excuse herself as she knew they were discussing men things. Hermione could not believe that Harry was so calm about today, but I guess when you've stared down the point of Voldemort's wand, not much could get you nervous. Unlike Ron, Harry was quite confident around women, especially Ginny; he had changed since his early years, and it made him a better person. Dobby joined them when they finished eating, and, without anyone noticing it, she hid a pair of elf size socks she had knitted the day before, hiding it between a jug of Pumpkin juice and a pot of porridge.

She was going to go see some Runes that Harry found.  
  
On the way down, Harry described what he and Dobby had been doing, mapping out the lower levels, finding a cold room where it was enchanted to keep stuff cold and/or freezing, a large store room where magic keep everything preserved as if it had just put in, and even a wine seller that could compete with some of best in the world. Once, he and Dobby came across a colony of what looked like large Flubberworms. Harry had been able to communicate with them through Dobby and made a pact that they could stay in the lower levels without being disturbed, and in exchange, they would map out the rest of the lower levels for him. As they approached a blank wall, Harry revealed a solid stone door, engraved with runes. Hermione approached the wall and could feel the strong enchantments. She cast a detection spell on herself to get some information about the nature of the ruins, and all she got was very powerful magic, very old and powerful magic. She made a life size copy of the door and headed back upstairs. Once there, she made her excuse to leave and go study these ruins and would see them later, allowing the two best friends some time together to work on the manor. Ron had never been good with this part of the construction, and probably made more of a mess than anything, but he felt it relaxing to have to concentrate on nothing but levitate stone, secure stone, levitate stone, ect...; he and Harry continued the conversation they had started in the kitchen. When the time came to leave, Harry went off to get Ginny, and Ron headed for the ministry to get Hermione.  
  
Once at the ministry, Ron went straight to the Ministry's library to find Hermione hidden behind some ancient scrolls and old tomes. He waited a good five minutes to see if she would notice him, then cleared his throat to get her attention. When that failed, he stealthily walked behind her, made sure no one was around, then reached one hand around to grab her breast, while the other one covered the scream that she was about to let go. One thing Ron had not considered, was she had been trained by one of the best duelers in the world, and it did not take long for her to go on the offensive. Before she could even notice it was Ron, she slammed her elbow below his waist, which caused a reflexive action to let her go. Then she slammed her chair back into his face, then rolled out of the way and pulled out her wand, and yelled out "Stupefy". To Ron, this happened in a blink of an eye; in one instant he had her boxed-in, thinking himself smart for getting a little action, but ended up stunned on the floor. For Hermione, it had taken too long, and she was cursing herself for being to slow. She looked down at Ron as a group of people came charging in after hearing the commotion. When they saw who was down, most just laughed and walked away. Hermione Enervated Ron with her wand then kicked him in the shoulder.  
  
"Never, ever do that again, or next time, so help me Merlin, I will turn you into a Newt and let you loose in Harry's dungeon."  
  
"Wow, that was amazing, a little painful, but still bloody brilliant. Now help me up, we have to get out of here. So are you in the mood for a little reconciliation"  
  
"Don't you think of anything else other then sex? I can't believe all men are like that. I should ask Harry if..."  
  
"No you don't. I don't want to know if he thinks about Ginny like that. It was bad enough the last time we found them together in that silly position, but to think that he thinks like that is not bearable. Now, how about we stop by the first aid station, I can feel the welt starting to rise on my lip." As Hermione looked, she can see the bruising over his lip start to swell. She tried to heal it, but it was just not her strong point. They made their way to the first aid station where they got a potion to help heal and reduce the swelling. Once done, they Disparated to the field and waited for Harry to show up.  
  
"So, you think that was pretty good huh?" asked Hermione.  
  
"I think that you could give Harry a run for his money."  
  
"I don't think so, although I would love to beat your sister at least once. With all the training we've been doing, and the fact she does not see Harry as often, I can probably be her match now."  
  
"I love the way you get intense at the talk of competition; it seems to make you go flush, and well, it excites me. Very much." With that, Ron got a hold of her and they started snogging right there at the back entrance.  
  
"Excuse me, but maybe you can continue this at a later time?"  
  
Both Ron and Hermione broke away, both flushed from kissing and growing redder at the sight of Ginny and Harry standing there hand in hand.  
  
"Sorry mate, but well, I can't stop myself, she drives me crazy"  
  
The group made their way down the tunnel, Ron showing Harry where to get to the change rooms, then he and Hermione went the opposite direction towards the box, with Ginny not to far behind. Once there, they noticed that the box was about half full, and that his brothers had gotten him a Butterbeer Extra, and in turn (hiding it from his mother and Hermione), Ron pulled out a bottle of Firewhiskey, which he passed first to his brother Bill. Fred and George had just let loose some Wizbangs that turned into candy. Everyone cheered as they started to eat the candy, a nice orange flavor Ron noticed. At first, he wasn't too sure if the Firewhiskey was causing his eyes to miss focus, but he noticed that soon his hands were changing color.  
  
"Fred, George, stop that now or you'll embarrass your father."  
  
"Sorry Mum."  
  
Soon, the Hogwarts group arrived, and the box turned into a big party, with everyone changing into Chudley yellow and orange, like the rest of the fans. Ron even noticed Dobby was wearing orange, although the costume was a little over the top. Soon the teams came out to warm up and the crowd was going wild. While most of the crowds cheered for Harry, those in the box cheered for Angelina, Alicia and Harry, as they had played for Gryffindor back at school. Once the teams went back in, the tension started to rise as it was only a few minutes before the start of the match.  
  
"Ladies and gentlemen welcome to tonight's final match up, Chudley vs Puddlemere. Here are your Cannons: Captain Oliver Wood, the Chasers Angelina Johnson, Alicia Spinnet, and Thomas Flint, your Beaters Tom Snow and Julie Smith, and the Seeker Harry Potter!"  
  
The crowd went wild, drowning out the announcer's voice as he introduced Puddlemere's starting lineup. The Ministry's box itself shook from the impact of everyone jumping up and down; even Hermione and Molly got into the mood. Soon, everyone went quiet as the referee asked for both captains too shake hands and the box was open...


	3. Ginny

Chapter 3  
Ginny  
  
Ginny could not sleep. She had tossed and turned the whole night, too nervous to face the next day. She should have been tired, after winning yesterdays match against Hufflepuff, which lasted a grueling 6 hours. She had not seen poor this bad since a match two years ago between Ravenclaw and Slytherin in which they played in near hurricane weather. That match had lasted 20 hours and all but a few starters actually made it without ending up in the infirmary. Of course they did celebrate yesterdays win, but it was nothing compared to when Harry was around; he knew how to throw a party. Last nights party consisted of some food from the kitchen, and a lot of people standing around the fireplace, trying to thaw out.  
  
Ginny was considering getting up, but it was still dark out and she could not really go off and fly, as was her habit when she could not sleep. Harry had not come by to watch the game yesterday because Oliver had called an unplanned practice to utilize the weather as good practice time. Harry had probably been too tired to come and see the game, or partake in the celebration. It would have been nice to have warmed up with Harry, letting him hold her, keeping her secure from even her bad dreams.   
  
Ginny drifted back to sleep.  
  
"Ginny, wake up, Hedwig is waiting for you."  
  
Rebecca, one of her dorm mates, sat around waiting for her to open the package.  
  
"Thanks Hedwig, and here, this is for Harry." She attached a small letter that she had written up before bed last night. She then gave the owl a piece of pie she had left over from yesterday and Hedwig took off.  
  
"Looks a little heavy for it just to be a letter. Maybe he got you some muggle lingerie, you know the type that you see in those muggle magazines?"  
  
"Rebecca, Harry would never send something like that by mail, its too personal. No, this is probably an appology for not coming to see the match last night."  
  
Ginny opened the package.  
  
'Dear Ginny, I am sorry I could not come see your match last night, although congratulations are in order. I am happy to see you play Seeker, although I know you prefer being a Chaser; think of it as a way to improve your flying skills. That catch you made was excellent (Remus recorded the match and sent it too me, I watch it all).

'I am formaly requesting your presence to diner tonight in the room of requirements at 19:00, formal wear requested. To make your day as joyful as could be, I have gotten you a special Valentimes gift. Please place the tip of your wand on the rose at the bottom of the page, and say the words 'I will be there'. I will see you later. Love, Harry Potter.'  
  
Ginny reread the letter twice. It seemed the letter was written on a bag or something similar; there was no way to open the bag without ripping it open. Soon, a dozen girls had entered the dorm, waiting for something to happen. She touched the rose at the bottom of the letter; confirmed she was going to be ther, and there was a little spark. Soon, a silver cloud came out of the letter and formed above her. Curious, she touched the cloud, but nothing happened.  
  
"That is a strange gift Ginny," said on of the girls  
  
"I wonder if he just failed to cast something," answered another with a snear.  
  
As Ginny got up to go face the girl who had just made the comment, a spark erupted in the cloud, and swirl of pink was now visible within it. Soon, rose pettals start to fall in front of Ginny. When she stopped moving, the petals stopped. It only rained rose petals when she moved. All the girls gasped at this. Never had they seen something so beautiful, so romantic. Ginny took off through the common area, and went to the Head Girl shower. Once done, she raced to the great hall to see Luna, all the while rose petals fell in front of her. Everyone saw her gift from Harry, including Filch who immediately started to complain about the mess. What he did not notice is that after five minutes, they just evaporated into thin air, leaving behind the scent of roses. This lasted all day until it was time to meet Harry. She had found it curious that she did not see or hear of Harry all day; she had even gone to the kitchen to see if anything special was being cooked. As she was approaching the room of requirements, she could smell something sweet cooking. She entered the room; it looked a lot like Harry's kitchen back home, except it was covered in roses. The other only thing different was that it was Harry preparing the meal, without magic

"Harry, what are you doing?"  
  
"I am cooking our diner, what else does it look like?. I could not get you permission to visit me, so I brought my kitchen along. Why don't you have a seat milady, diner is served."  
  
Harry prepared and served the meal. Although the food was not perfect, it was good enough to rival even her moms cooking. She did enjoy the the atmosphere of it being just her and Harry. He had brought over a couple of bottles of red wine that he had found in one of the many cellars. The meal was topped off by pudding and coffee. Once the meal was done, he disparated the dishes into a trunk, shrunk the trunk back into one of his pockets, then he asked her to dance just as music started to play. Harry had become quite the proficient dancer, knowing that Ginny loved to dance. After spending an hour or so dancing around the room, they decided to take a break to catch their breath; that is when he presented her with a beautiful platinum necklace; as Harry had planned everything, it was to no surprise that this took her over the edge. In tears of joy, she got up and asked the room:  
  
"I require a large comfortable bed and soft lighting."  
  
And there appeared a large comfortable bed surrounded by lit candles. Harry smiled as he was led to the bed. There, Ginny provided the evenings entertainment. He admired Ginny's new outtake on life, and of course her sexual desire. It was about four in the morning when they parted company; with Harry having to fly back invisible back to Hogsmeade to Disparate back to his home.  
  
In their next visit, Ginny decided to go pay him a visit during her Hogsmeade pass. She had brought along her birthday present from Harry entitled '1001 Chinese methods to combining Sex with Magic'. She knew he had been out in the morning for Quidditch practice, so when he arrived back home to find Ginny lying across his bed with nothing on but a smile, reading his gift to her, he just about lost it. They had been in the middle of a more difficult act when Hermione and Ron Apparated right in the middle of his bedroom. Ron flipped out, and luckily, Ginny had been using her wand to levitate herself, and so was able to stun Ron before he did anything silly. Hermione grabbed Ron and, apologizing profusely for interrupting them, and took Ron home.  
  
"I guess I'll have to strengthen the wards around our bedroom."  
  
"Why just the bedroom? Maybe we can set up an entry hall for wizards who want to visit. This way we are not limited to just the bedroom."  
  
"I never thought of that, Ginny, but I like it."  
  
"Leave that one up to me." With that, they continued for a few more hours before she had to leave and go back to Hogwarts.  
  
Her time at school was flying by, and with everything going on, she was actually doing well in the classroom. Although never a problem in the Defense department, she was actually finding it easier in both Potions and Charms. Snape was an incredible teacher once he stopped being a git, and with the entire wand training Harry had made her go through, she was finding herself cast without thought. She remembered before starting her seventh year, asking Harry what he was intending on doing. Harry was rich enough to do anything he wanted to do, but he just shrugged and said that even if Voldemort had been defeated, there was still evil in the world, and he wanted to fight it. That is when she decided to train to be an Auror, as they were normally the best equipped for battling evil, although Harry and normal were rarely spoken in the same sentence.  
  
Exams were beginning next week, and while Ginny did spend some time studying, she spent a good amount of time talking with Luna about there respective futures. Luna had decided to be a Healer, and might stay on to apprentice at Hogwarts and maybe replace Madame Pomfrey one day; or maybe get a job at St-Mungos. This way, if she stays at Hogwarts, she could be closer to Neville as he was going to take over Herbology full time next year. They had not talked much about marriage, but she figured it was coming soon.  
  
Ginny was writing her final exam, Defense against the Dark Arts. Her mind was drifting to events that happened during her seven years. Tom Riddle' diary, Quidditch, Harry, DA meetings, the battle at the Ministry of Mysteries, the final battle with Voldemort. 'List eight signs of a Werewolf'. She was finally getting what she wanted the most in her life; Harry. 'Name four other magical creatures who have similarities with the Werewolf.' Ginny was thinking that this was so easy. 'Why do stunning spells not work on Giants, and what does work to stun a giant?' She noticed that both her and Luna had already reached the last page. Colin was almost there to, as were a few others from her DA meetings. 'Describe a Basilisk and its affects on living beings.' What is this, a joke? Everyone here remembers what happened seven years ago. With a smile, she started to describe in detail everything she remembered about the Basilisk, and more specifically how to kill it; she figured whoever wrote this exam never really saw one in real life. Ginny finished writing, took a few relaxing breaths and reread her exam. Once done, she got up and handed her exam over to the person from the Ministry. 

"Thank you dear, and good luck."

As Ginny was exiting the Great Room, she noticed Proffesors Snape and Remus laughing. She approached them as Luna was also exiting the Great Room.  
  
"What are you laughing at?"  
  
"No particular reason. How did it go?"  
  
"Not really hard after all the training we received," answered Luna.  
  
"Anyone see Harry? I thought he'd be here for me."  
  
"Maybe he is waiting for you in the common room? You should go pack up, unless you want to hang around for the feast and your N.E.W.T. results?"  
  
"Very funny."  
  
With that, both girls went to pack, while the Professors headed for the Headmistresses office.  
  
Ginny didn't find Harry in the common room, so she went to pack. School was not over for some students who still had exams to write and the feast to attend tomorrow night; she said she would try to attend, depending on how the match went today. She quickly packed everything up and descended the stairs. As she approached the main floor, she could see people gathered around someone with black and bushy hair.

"HARRY POTTER!"

The crowd parted as most knew the dangers of standing between the two lovers. Ginny had been levitating her trunk behind her, which fell to ground as she rushed towards her friend, her lover, and her soul mate. Once on top of him, she proceeded to kiss him without abandon.

"Why were you not there when I finished?"

"Minerva thought it would be best if I didn't disrupt the class. Now come on, we need to leave. Let's take care of your trunk."

With a flick of his wand, the trunk shrunk and it entered his pocket. They met up with the rest of them at the front and used a Portkey to the field. She left Harry to go change and joined her friends and family in her father's box.

"Ladies and gentlemen welcome to tonight's final match up, Chudley vs Puddlemere. Here are your Cannons: Captain Oliver Wood, the Chasers Angelina Johnson, Alicia Spinnet, and Thomas Flint, your Beaters Tom Snow and Julie Smith, and the Seeker Harry Potter!"

a/n I know these chapters are small and repetitive, but too big for one chapter so that is that. The match is next.


	4. The Match

I don't own Harry Potter or any of the other characters of Rowlings, other then a few I made up. I'm not doing this for money, just pleasure.  
  
Chapter 4  
The Match  
  
Harry was now in his element, on top of his Firebolt, waiting for the Snitch to appear. He could tell that the Puddlemere Seeker Robert Davis was a little nervous. In their last match, Harry blew by him and caught the snitch so fast Robert did not know what had happened until the crowd was cheering for Harry. Robert had been known for his nerves of steel, and rarely was led astray by other Seekers trying to fool him. It was different with Harry. Put aside the fact that he destroyed He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named, he was incredibly fast, agile, talented, and always seemed to be having fun.  
  
Down below, the Captains just shook hands and the balls were released. Robert looked up to see what Harry would do, but Harry had already taken off. Robert took off after him; he could not lose the match because of his stubbornness to be cool under the gun. The crowd was holding its collective breath. Robert could see Harry getting a better grip on his broom as he pulled a negative dive with a barrel roll. Robert could not see the Snitch, if there was one, as Harry was blocking his view, but he forced himself to try and pass him anyways. He rode up beside Harry. Harry looked at him, smiled and said, "Watch out for the Bludger". Just then, Harry pulled out of his dive, dodged a Bludger that had been aimed at him and sped off for the sky. Robert was not as lucky; he pulled up before crashing, but was hit in the arm by the Bludger sent by his own teammate intended for Harry.  
  
"I'll get you for that one Harry," yelled Robert, although the only one to hear him was the crowd, because they broke out in laughter. It seemed that Harry's little stunt allowed the Cannons to score and now had possession and were setting up for another goal. Puddlemere's Captain was calling for everyone to regroup just as the Quaffle flew by him to score another point.  
  
Oliver knew that Harry was the best seeker playing the game, and knew that Perry White, Captain of the opposing team, also knew that Harry was the best seeker this year. A few more years and he would be better than Wonski. So Oliver's plan was simple: Harry was to make them think that he was always after the Snitch. Perry would have to send his Beaters after Harry, allowing Tom and Julie to concentrate on Puddlemere's Chasers. Oliver knew that given time he could run the score up to the point that even if by some miracle Harry could not catch the Snitch, the Cannons would still win. Angelina and Alicia had protested at that plan, but Harry had just shrugged and said he would do whatever was needed.  
  
Harry was now flying on cruise control. He had already blocked out the noise of the crowd, though he heard Ginny wishing him luck, and just listened for the noise of the Snitch, as he liked to put it. He once told a reporter that in one of his matches, he was able to hear the Snitch from across the field. This caused uproar at the Ministry. Ron was stuck three days at work doing research into that very possibility. After the three days, Harry told him he had just made it up; it was his way his way of having fun. Ron just jumped at Harry and was about to strangle him when he fell to floor. Harry had cast a sticky floor hex in front of him knowing Ron would react that way. Harry just told Ron that he was getting back at him for being such a git at school, and that he was starting to pay back everyone who'd caused him grief or trouble. Ron laughed and tried to get up, looking up to Harry when he hadn't dispelled the Hex. Harry returned the laugh and said he had made him suffer for months on end, so he would have to suffer the same. Ron just stared at him, not noticing the people hiding, and when everyone yelled Happy Birthday, Ron noticed the hex was gone and everyone had a good time. Ron overheard Harry explaining to Hermione how he had known Ron would react the way he did, and that he had cast the spell right away as Ron was busy; it was after all Harry's responsibility of distracting Ron to let the rest of the group get ready.  
  
The hours seemed to go by, and the score was being run up. After four hours of play, the Cannons were leading 340 to 180. The Snitch made very brief appearances, to the point that even Harry now reacted when the crowd thought it saw the snitch. As the sun was starting to creep down, it was starting to get hard to see anything coming from the west side of the field. This seemed to favor Puddlemere as they started to use their Beaters to hit the Bludgers using the blinding effects of the sun to hide its flight path. This was somewhat new to the Cannons, as this was not something Oliver had trained on. When Tom was knocked off his broom and fell twenty feet, Oliver called a timeout to bring in a reserve Beater while Tom would be healed in the infirmary.  
  
"John, you're going to take over for Tom. Now Team, the signs are indicating a long match, so if you are getting tired, to the point that you cannot stay on your broom, let me know, and we will switch you with your reserve partner."  
  
"Captain, you have 30 seconds to get your team in the air."  
  
"Right, remember what I said, and good luck."  
  
The play resumed and by the time the sun had gone down and midnight was coming around, the points were almost even, with the Cannons still holding on to the lead, but barely 470-420. The referee had called a ten-minute break to allow players to switch if needed, and to turn on more the lights. All the Puddlemere's players switched, but Harry and Oliver stayed on. The wind was starting to pick up, and the signs indicated a rough evening on the way.  
  
"What do think Harry, kind of remind you of the game back in your third year?"  
  
"Well since I don't have to worry about the Dementors this time, I am sure to be able to stay on my broom. I am worried about our lack of practice in this environment, or even play time in the middle of the night, especially with our reserve players."  
  
"Aye, and the fact that they seem to be dominating as the night wears on. Maybe we should try something new?"  
  
"What are you thinking?"  
  
"What would you think of switching to Chaser for a while? You are by far the best flyer, and the Snitch has not really been showing itself. I know you don't have enough experience of working with the rest of the team as Chaser, and it may be only for an hour or so, but even so, it might throw off their game for a bit. What I'll do is bring Jeanine in to play Seeker, this way a switch would not take long, and she has a tendency of making the other seekers keep an eye on her more then the snitch."  
  
"That's quite devious Oliver."  
  
"Thank you."  
  
The switch was made, with the crowd seeming to wake from the snooze they had taken in the ten minutes the game had been stopped. The Puddlemere Captain was shocked at the change and asked for a time out to reorganize, never imagining seeing Harry Potter as a chaser. Jeanine was not a bad Seeker, compatible to his own, and she wasn't bad to look at either. But what will he do about Harry? He was by far the best flyer in the match, and probably in the league.  
  
"All right team, this is a little new to us, but we will have to adapt. Arnold and Bill, you keep the Bludger on Harry, while Joel, you will be matched against Jeanine. Joel, did you hear me? JOEL! DID YOU HEAR ME?"  
  
"Yeah, Yeah! Don't get so excited man."  
  
The referee blew the whistle and match restarted. With everyone expecting Harry to run with the Quaffle, Harry faked the catch and took off to the left of the field flying in loops, pretending to shake off his pursuit. He was so fast, that Arnold, the Puddlemere Beater, hit his own player tailing Harry. Perry, the Puddlemere captain was yelling at his players that Harry did no have the Quaffle, but failed to get their notice. He sighed as he saw the Quaffle beat his replacement. He left the field and hoped to catch a few winks of sleep. In his experience, the Snitch was rarely caught at night, and with Harry playing Chaser, they had as good a chance to be refreshed, while Woods and Harry would both be tired.  
  
The hours went by, with Harry showing no signs of slowing down. At about two in the morning, Oliver left the field for what he called a power nap. The score was now back to a good margin for the Cannons 610-500, but still not enough if the Snitch was caught. Twice Harry thought he saw the snitch, but could not communicate fast enough to Jeanine. Harry noticed that the Beaters were having a hard time concentrating on him for the moment as Jeanine decided to fly by them. Jeanine was a decent player, but it had taken a few years for teams to take her seriously, but when she tried out for the Cannons, she knew right away she had found her home.  
  
After the first two tryouts, she had been surprised at Oliver's ability to work with women as equals, to the point that she was frustrated when she discovered she had a crush on him. Of course his ability to work with woman made it seem he did not notice her in such a way as to be possible to have a relationship outside of Quidditch. She had made the team as a reserve Chaser, with Seeker being her backup role. She thought she had a great chance to make Seeker until Oliver announced that he had gotten Harry Potter to play for the Cannons. Jeanine had never seen Harry play, and although she knew all about his role in the defeat of Lord Voldemort, she did not know a whole lot more. She had graduated the year before he started school, and never really looked back. As a Ravenclaw, it came to everyone's surprise that she decided to stay in the sport after graduating. She had been a great player at school, but always made it seem a leisure sport more then a passion. She was glad to be here, even playing the role she asked to do, because like Harry, she would catch the Snitch, or die trying; and if Harry could be asked to be a diversion so they could score goals, the least she could do was help the team. She was watching him now, this time he had the Quaffle, and was being chased by the Puddlemere Chasers. He just flew as if the world around him did not exist; his ability to focus was unparallel, as was his ability to make other people second-guess themselves when around him.  
  
"Another goal by Harry Potter!"  
  
Jeanine snapped out of her reverie and actively started seeking out the Snitch. At around four in the morning, the referee called another ten- minute break to allow players to change. Harry took this time to go and relieve himself. He was back up, relieved to see all the starting players back with him. Harry was looking at Oliver when he happen to let out a big yawn; Oliver saw this and got that look and was about to approach Harry, but Harry shot him a look; it said 'Don't even think about asking me to rest'. Oliver, stunned at the fierceness in his eyes, left it at that, knowing that Harry had an immense pool of energy that no one would understand. Looking at the scoreboard, he noticed that in the small time Harry played Chaser, Harry accounted for 110 of the 150 points scored. Harry also attributed to a couple of saves, when he just happen to be at the right place at the right time. His instincts had not been dulled, even after this long of play.  
  
Back in the stands, some of the people were either passed out from drinking too much, or just over exhausted. In the Weasley's box, no one dared sleep, even though Bill was pretty much out of it. He and Charlie realized they were getting a little old when they could not keep up to Ron's cheering. Ginny seemed to be in a zone of her own. She never once took her eyes off of Harry, only going to the loo when Harry took his break. With all the yelling and cheering she had been doing, it was amazing she still had a voice left. Her mom had helped her with some revitalization potions she had brought along. 'I remember your Dad had played one match that had gone into the night back at school, and I remembered how much you can lose your voice when your cheering your man,' Mrs. Weasley said to her daughter. Ginny blushed a little at this, but thanked her nonetheless.  
  
The match restarted with as much energy as it had when the match first started, yesterday afternoon. It didn't take long for the Bludger to start coming after Harry. The Snitch still hadn't shown up, and the match quickly came to a stall. False dawn was playing havoc with everyone's senses, even Harry.  
  
"Look out Harry!" Harry heard, more in his mind then his ears. Harry dove down, but not before the Bludger hit him in his left arm. He kept on flying as if the Bludger never even touched him; he did a Loop de Loop just to prove it. Harry just waved at Oliver to tell him he was fine, and the play continued. The Puddlemere Beaters were curious as to how they missed him, but figured they at least have his attention and continued after him. Harry kind of mentioned in passing to Julie that maybe they could help out a little in keeping the Bludger off him. She agreed with a apprehensive look, as she knew they could do a better job of keeping the bludger off of Harry, and felt guilty as they had time to nap, while he never stopped. Julie attacked with a vengeance, moving with renewed determination to keep Harry safe.  
  
Harry flew off and knew his arm was broken; he could feel the arm swelling and knew that sooner more then later, he would need to stop before passing out. He maneuvered around so as to place his cloak to hide the fact his arm was tucked in, and knew sooner or later Oliver would notice and get his player off the field. The sun was about ready to break over the horizon, so Harry flew to the east side of the field so as to not be blinded. Robert, Puddlemere's seeker followed suit. The sun crested like a bomb going off; both the light and the heat caused by it had a physical effect on everything. The stands and spectators took on the color of red and orange, with people either waking up to a new and beautiful day, or merely soaking in the fact they were up for most or the entire match overnight. Quickly, the smell of bacon made its way around, with Harry feeling the effects of the lack of food with a rumble from his stomach. Harry was looking towards Ginny and the rest of the Weasleys hen he happen upon the second most beautiful creature on this earth, (as Ginny was the most). Right in front of the Weasleys, was the Snitch.  
  
Harry took off, with Robert on his heels. Harry's cloak slipped a little, revealing him holding his arm tight to his chest. The crowd held there breath as Robert, noticing this, smiled as he started to pass Harry. Without both hands on his broom, Harry could not out fly Robert. Harry knew this, Robert knew this, Oliver knew this, and so did the rest of the crowd. Harry started to feel bad; he had deliberately jeopardized his team's ability to win by holding out from leaving. He loathed himself for being so self-centered he almost missed the fact Robert was getting ready to dive after the Snitch. The last thing he saw before diving, was Ginny looking at him with no emotion, save the words she mouthed. 'Get it!' Harry knew what he had to do. Willing his broken arm to grab the broom, he leaned forward and dove down to follow Robert. He still had his eye on the Snitch, but knew that Robert would catch it if he did not hurry. They were both traveling at an incredibly fast speed, knowing that the ground was coming quickly. Neither gave up an inch, willing to die trying to catch it; the alternative was living with the fact they had survived without catching it. At the last minute, the Snitch pulled from its dive, and without missing a beat, the seekers followed suit, expecting that from the Snitch. They were now traveling a few feet from the ground, with Harry now having caught up to Robert. Both were leaning as far forward as was possible without crashing down. Harry, knowing that he could not keep it up any longer did the only that came to mind; he jumped off his broom. The only problem was that he was traveling about as fast as a broom could handle, and the ground was right there. He tucked his arms and legs in, turning him into a ball and hit the ground rolling. From up above, he looked like a cannonball rolling towards the stands. Harry sensed his coming doom as the stands drew closer, so he opened himself up to slow down. The last thing he remembered was thinking it would be great to have a cushioning spell cast on all the sides of the stands to prevent injuries of this sort; of course not too many players jump off their broom. Someone must have thought about it because when Harry hit the wall, it looked like it swallowed him whole before spitting him out.  
  
Harry just lay there, looking like a broken doll thrown out to the garbage. His team charged towards him, approaching him delicately, trying not break him any further. In the background, the noise from the crowd was deafening, while the announcer calling this one of the best matches he had seen in ages. The Cannons Have Won the Cup! Making there way down to the ground were the Weasleys with Ginny leading the charge. The field nurses had already gotten to Harry and were checking his pulse when Ginny burst through the crowd that had gathered. She saw him there, breathing, but unconscious, The Snitch held firmly in his right hand. When the nurse tried to pull the Snitch out of his hand, she found his grip to be the strong, and even with the help of the other nurse, they could not get him to release it. Finally, Harry's eyes opened and he looked around a little confused. Hermione summoned Harry's glasses, repaired them and handed it to him. "Thanks," Harry said, as he tried to stand.  
  
"I don't think so young man, not before some Skele-Grow." said one of the nurses.  
  
One of the reporters finally made it through. "Harry, how does it feel to win?"  
  
"Good"  
  
"Do you have anything to say about the match?"  
  
Harry looked around until he focused on Ron; he him threw him the Snitch a grunt, "Keep it for me." Ron caught it and placed it immidietly in his pocket for safe keeping.  
  
"Well, anything about the match?", asked the reporter again.  
  
"The only things I want to say can be said in 5 words."  
  
"And what would that be?"  
  
Reaching tenderly into his cloak with his right hand, he pulled out a small box. By now, his hands were shaking from exhaustion and he was having trouble focusing as his head was pounding. He opened the small box, took out a beautiful ring, with a diamond cut out like a Snitch, and said" Ginny, will you marry me?"  
  
At this point Ginny was crying, along with Mrs Weasley, Hermione, Fleur, and even some of the players.  
  
"Yes I would, Harry."  
  
Harry placed the ring on her finger and they kissed, for a long time, although to them, time always stood still when they kissed; no one seemed to mind. After a while, one of the nurses coughed and said, "we really need to get him to the infirmary."  
  
Harry looked at Ginny and whispered to her, "I love you", then completely passing out.  
  
A/N I'm not sure if anyone is reading this, and if so, I'm sorry it's taking so long to write, but a promotion is causing much more work then I anticipated. 


	5. Revelations

Disclaimer: I own nothing but a few Hobgoblins that are still sneaking around.

Chapter 5

Revelations

A Hobgoblin walks into a barely lit room, books and parchments scattered throughout. He shields his eyes from the light and uses his dark vision to look around. He spots another Hobgoblin, his master, at a desk, writing on fine parchment paper. As the Hobgoblin approaches the desk, he bows and slides over a piece of paper.

"They have accepted master."

"How many were lost?"

"The messenger was spared."

"How many escorts?"

"There were six escorts. Their heads now adorn his walls as we speak."

"You know we will need him to make this successful."

"I'm not sure I do understand master, as the price may be too high. Even if he is your brother, how many will survive the trip? He has started to kill his own people, and his followers obey him like a messiah."

With a heavy sigh, the older Hobgoblin put down his pen, and stared at the younger hobgoblin, "we have the means to get back to the mainland, but no means to secure a safe passage back through the cave at Durness. For this, we need warriors, as they will need to maintain a security ring for us to cast the spell to reopen the caves. This ceremony will take our entire house to cast it, and will leave us vulnerable for many hours. We do not know what technology the humans have developed, but it will be something that even those from the House of Works will be amazed with. They are still perfecting the sling bow, which is only accurate up to 300 paces and is very slow to reload. I am afraid that this departure will be a one-way trip. Lord Gryffindor's only mistake was not destroying us, leaving that chance we may escape. He had warned us that he was giving us this opportunity to save ourselves. Now we will repay him tenfold for his treatment of our people, but only if we can make it back and resurrect the pacts with our allies. Go and prepare for the arrival of the houses, as they will expect a great feast, and a lot of blood."

With this, the Hobgoblin returned to his parchment as the other one backed out of the door, and closed it behind him.

Harry was walking through a park, looking around at the familiar people, but unable to clearly identify each one. As he approaches a fountain, he notices a man talking to a beautiful woman. Suddenly she gets up and pushes him into the water and storms off, leaving this fellow to get out of the water by himself. He is Sirius

"What is so funny?" asked Sirius.

"Sirius, what are you doing here? I mean by the looks of things, I imagine that I'm probably unconscious in the infirmary." asked Harry.

"That's right you are, and if it were up to me, I would be kicking your arse for doing that to us, although that was an amazing catch. Actually, the reason that I am here, is that normally when your automatic defenses go up when you are sleeping or unconscious, no one can get in too send you a message. Since you are not only unconscious, but totally spent, out of juice, high and dry, no wax left in your candle,..."

"I get it already! When did you become so annoying?"

"When it became clear that not only were you your Mother's boy with those bedroom green eyes the woman swoon over, but you were as cunning as your Dad, suave and debonair like me, and smart like Lupin. I figure it was my job to do it as you can't hurt me since I'm dead anyway."

"I didn't even think you could spell debonair? Anyways, there are worse things then being dead, so remember that."

"Hey I'm your godfather, allow me some respect. And what do you mean their are worst things?"

"Sorry, but that is my ace in the whole."

"Anyways, the reason you're here, or more precisely, the reason I'm here is to warn you that trouble is brewing from an ancient enemy of your family, oh, and to congratulate you on your proposal. And if I'm not mistaken, she should be getting you to wake up...now.

Harry felt himself being sucked back into his body. The heat was intense but familiar. It was the same heat he discovered years ago at the battle in Romania where he and Ginny had been trapped by a landslide, and Harry had been badly injured. He had just saved a friend of his, one who he had witnessed the birth of in Hagrid's hut back in his first year: Norbert. Harry and his band of brothers and sisters went to help Charlie out when a bunch of Death Eaters decided to attack his camp. Harry had managed to get everyone out of the way except Ginny who refused to leave him behind. Harry had created a shield to hold up tons of rock, but as the weight started to crush Harry, Ginny just put her hands on Harry's chest and allowed herself to freely transfer her power into his, knowing that her life depended on his success, and although her power were above those of her school mates, it was just a drop in the ocean compared to Harry, but to Harry, it felt like wave that took out Atlantis. Her powers were magnified such that not only did Harry heal all his minor wounds, he was able to convert his shield into a bubble just expanded until all the rocks had been removed. When that was that was all said and done, he picked up Ginny, looked deep into her eyes and kissed her; as a wave of passion swept through him, he knew that he had found the love his soul ached for. He had never felt anything like that, even though he had tried dating and such other women during the summer after his fifth year and in early sixth year, this was on an entirely new level.

Light was burning his eyes even though his eyes were closed. He could here noise that were people talking, but then one voice broke through, and he followed it home.

"Open your eyes Harry." Cooed the soft voice. "Hurry and come back so that I can knock you on your butt. How dare you pull something like that? Was it worth it to have me suffer like that? Make everyone sick over seeing you crash into the wall. Thank god Professor Snape remembered that cushioning spell or else we'd be scrapping you off like..."

With a smile, Harry opened his eyes to find a red haired beauty with soul sucking brown eyes looking down on him, her hands resting on his heart. Although he did not need his glasses anymore, he was still unable to focus on anything but Ginny.

"Sorry love, it just got out of hand. I was going to sit out for a while, but you know how I am."

"Someday that hero thing you have will really make me upset. How are you feeling? You have to see yourself, you look like crap." Ginny said this with a smile, as not too many would speak to Harry in such a tone. Harry took a few deep breaths as he tasted the potions that had been applied while unconscious. Before the final battle with Voldemort, it had been very hard for anyone to apply a potion to someone unconscious, as they would mostly choke on it. Harry had Hermione and Ginny work out a way for an Imperious type spell that would enable a person unconscious to drink a potion. Once this spell was developed, it was only passed along to qualified personnel who were properly screened to ensure secrecy. This enabled medical people the chance to effectively start to heal a person more quickly, which in the past relied on people needing to wake up before they could be helped. During the war, many wounded were healed before they awoke, enabling them to go back to the grind of battle. Harry smiled at Hermione who he knew had cast the spell, as the more powerful the wizard, the harder the spell was; only four people alive (known) could possibly cast that spell to affect Harry, and three were in the room: Ginny, Hermione and Snape, while Headmistress McGonagall was still at Hogwarts, or was yesterday anyways. It was not that they were more powerful then Harry, although Harry had lost much of his power when Voldermort was destroyed, it was just that these four people shared a bond that stretched beyond comprehension, and although Ron also shared that bond with Harry, he was not in the same class of wizarding skills as the rest of him and was unable to cast it. Ron had proved he was as powerful as any of them when it counted; ask any Giant that encountered Ron on the battlefield from the first wave.

"Ginny, maybe you get off of me please? I am still waiting for your answer, as I am sure the rest of the gang is anxious to know your answer."

"Lord Gryffindor, it would be my honor and privilege to accept your offer of marriage. You do realize though you are not just marrying me, but my whole family, as one comes with the other."

"I would not dream of it being any other way."

Harry and Ginny kissed a deep passionate kiss that still made everyone believe it was as righteous as life itself. The love they shared was not bound by just physical aspects, but was so deep that it was almost unearthly

"Excuse me Mr. Potter, but if you are up to it, we would like to present the trophy to the team." This came from an older gentleman who actually looked a lot like Dumbledore did, with a lot less twinkling and no beard.

"You are right Mr. Evans, sorry." Harry replied.

"Harry, is that not the gentleman you met over dinner earlier last year?"

"Yes it was, and wait until you see the surprise I have in store for you my love. Maybe it will make up for the fact that I scared you, maybe just a little."

"We'll see."

Harry got out of the bed a little unsteady and was helped by Ron, as he was his mate, and it was just an accepted fact. Harry's left arm was bandaged so as to not shift too much, as his right knee. The procession made there way out to the stands, where the crowd gave a roaring cheer at the sight of Harry, with his new fiancée beside him, making his way to the center of the pitch. First Harry's team approached to give him a shake and raise him over their heads as he was the reason they had won. Next, the Puddlemere players came up to him and after congratulating him on his victory, both on the field and in life, they also raised him in the air, to the cheering laughter of the fans. Once that was all said and done, the referee came over and congratulated all the players. He then handed the stage to Ron, as it was his responsibility to present the trophy and the prize money to the winner.

"Thank you everyone for coming out to the HGP field, to enjoy one of the best games ever played in the history of Quidditch. I am sure that everyone here would like to give a round of applause to all the players here today."

The crowd gave another roar.

Holding a large trophy of a Quidditch field with moving players, he continued "I would like to present this Trophy to this year's winner of the U.K. cup the Chuddley Canons." Again the crowd roared with approval of a speedy speech, as many fans were very tired and wanted to go home and either sleep (Puddlemere supporter), or go and get ready for the party that about to be held everywhere yellow and orange were displayed.

"I present you Oliver Wood, captain."

"Thank you sir, and thank you everyone here today to help cheer on such a wonderful game. This sport owes much of its success to all the spectators out there, who just love a good match, and a good match it was. On behalf of myself and the rest of the team, thank you."

Ron continued, "Now I would like to thank everyone here today, including our major sponsor Weasley's Wizard Wheezes, for their contribution, and present this cheque to the owner of the Canons, representing HGP Enterprises Mr. Evans."

It was not known who the owner of the canons were. Mr Evans had been the company representative for all events, and he had never divulged that information. The company had started last year right after the final battle with Voldemort. It was not surprising, as many companies started up after the dark lord was defeated. It had been speculated that the company was owned by a consortium of wizards, and had made front page news in the Prophet. At the beginning, many people wanted to know who the owners were, and as it appeared that the company was growing larger and larger, people were interested in just investing with the company, which was flatly denied. The company was a major contributor to worthwhile charities, and so, the company became old news and was largely forgotten.

Mr. Evans got up and walked toward Ron, and whispered to him, "Sir, the owner himself is here if you would like to present it to him personally."

"But Mr. Evans, are you sure, as the owners box was filled with the kids from the orphanage again?"

"I am sure of myself Sir, as I have spoken to him."

Ron turned to the crowd, "well, it appears we have a bit of a surprise today, as the owner of HGP Enterprise is actually here at the game today. Would Mister...." Whispering out of the corner of his mouth, Ron asked Mr. Evans the name of the owner, as he had no record of it. "Harold"

"Would Mister Harold please come forward to claim your prize and allow everyone in the Wizarding world to finally put a face to such a wonderful person."

While everyone anticipated the owner of HGP Enterprise, Hermione looked to Ginny and asked, "Ginny, had you ever met this person before?"

"No, but I did meet this Mr. Evans before when he approached me to tell me that he had a way of helping me out with my request for the orphanage. He told me that the new owner of the Canons would not be using the owners box this year, as he did not feel comfortable with the attention he would get, so he gave me the box to be used for the children. I had asked to meet the Owner, even so far as asking Harry if he could arrange it, but the reply to Harry had been that it was impossible. So I just sent a Thank You note and left it at that."

Ron and Mr. Evans stood on the stage and looked towards the crowd, waiting patiently. No one noticed Harry making his way to the front of the stage, as it had been one of his ability he developed to move without notice.

Ron noticed Harry behind him, "Harry, do you know this Harold fellow? Why does he not want to step forward?"

"He's here Ron," answered Harry with a small smile on his lips.

Ron looked around the stage, actually looking around Harry with a questionable look on his face. Frustrated, he asks "Where?"

"Right in front of you." At this point, Ginny and Hermione had both caught on that Harry was Harold; half the stadium and most of the players had caught on. Ron was still looking for this person so that he could finally get this show over with, letting his frustration get the better of him. Sensing that Ron might do something silly, Harry grabbed the large cheque (similar to the way they did in the muggle world). Ron was about to pull the cheque out Harry's hand, when he noticed everyone else was smiling and Harry was winking at him. "Harry, do you own the Canons?"

"Surprise!"

At this point the reporters moved in and snapped pictures of Harry holding a cheque for over 200,000 Galleons. The questions also started: "Mr. Potter, why did you buy the team? Why did you not want people to know? What are you going to do with the money? Are you planning on staying on as the team seeker, and did you feel you could use your influence as the owner to make the team? What are your plans for the future? After your performance today, will you play for England if called upon? Mr Potter, how do you feel?"

As Harry's manager, Ginny stood up and approached the reporters; "Harry will be holding a formal interview within the next few days, as he needs time to rest. Those who will be chosen will receive an invitation. Now why we don't let the team get some rest and everyone's questions will be answered in due time."

Ginny put he arm around Harry and was about to help him back, when harry whispered in her ear and turned back to the reporters. Ginny got a little worried look, as if she was not sure what Harry was about to say, and it would only increase his tension of being in the spot light.

"Actually, I would like to answer two of those questions. One, what will I do with the money? The money will all go towards the 'Down With Voldemort Recovery Fund' for those who were affected by the battle with Voldemort. Two, I feel great, just a little tired" Harry answered. Harry looked towards Ginny with a smile on his face, as she stared at him with disbelief in her eyes; she had started this project as part of a Study course newly available for seventh year students to study the rise and fall of Lord Voldemort and other dark wizards and how to best fight them. It was a sort of introductory course to become an Auror, and used the idea that if someone cares for their community, they would work harder to fight for it. This project was also done with the help Hermione who had done most of the research into setting up the fund, and Harry's help with setting up the proper bank account with Gringotts.

The crowd exploded with cheering at hearing this news, elated by the fact that even after leading the main group in the battle against the Dark Lord, and even fighting against a publicity slandering campaign from within the Ministry, Harry Potter still managed to give back to the people. The Recovery Fund was not limited to just the wizarding world, but to Muggle world also. Ginny believed, as did Harry and friends, that Muggles were the ones most affected by this war; they were not aware of the cause of the violence against them as most wizards did, or at least that had accepted the Dark Lord's return.

Harry turned around and gave Ginny a very big kiss, and then the rest of the teams, friends and family came and congratulated him. "OK guys, tonight 7 PM at my place, I will have food and drinks." Turning to Ron, Harry asked, "Ron can you help us get out of here?"

Ron got that serious look he has, nodded to Harry, and spoke within a tiny microphone (wizard equivalent) and told his security people to mobilize. It was easier to get the group outside the wards so they could Disparate then to bring them down. It had taken Ron's group over a week of preparation to put up the spells for this game, and it will probably take them another week to bring them down; to prevent anyone from giving away the information, Hermione found a way to throw in a little chaos spin that would change the spell in such a way that the person who put up the spell could not bring it down without breaking it. This is how the spell breakers earned their pay.

Harry and company made their way outside the stadium surrounded by a ring of security personnel, mainly made up of Aurors and members of the Order of Phoenix. Order member had voted unanimously to stay together and help other nations deal with any 'Dark Lord' problems, and were now being funded by the Ministry. As the group arrived to the departure point, Harry waved to the crowd of well-wishers, and Disparated with Ginny in hand. After that, everyone but Ron left, as Ron still had some work to do. He told Hermione he would be back by lunch, and she told him she would have a hot bath waiting for him.

He started back for his temporary office to review the match, and sign off on the paperwork. With the overtime required for this match, he was even considering asking Harry for some of the ticket sales as had been done in the past to help cover cost, but now that he remembers it, Harry, or HGP Enterprise had kept the seat prices reasonable so that everyone could have the opportunity to see the match. Even the advertisers were limited to a few so that the game would not need to be interrupted with advertising spots. Hermione had commented to Ron during the game, that she found that most of the company's visible were those that Harry had an interest in, thinking he may have used his influence with the owner(s). He had a knack for the right investment.

After the war, Harry recognized that many shopkeepers had left Diagon Alley, Hogsmeade, and other Wizarding communities, so for a share of the profits, Harry started lending money to any student with a good and sound business plan, who would open up a business; he had learned that it was good business to allow people to fulfill their dreams, as it had worked out quite well with George and Fred. After all, his relationship with Gringotts was better then any other Human had, plus his connections at the Ministry allowed paperwork to be processed quite quickly. Harry now owned 20 percent of the retail property in Diagon Alley, plus many apartments. He had even gone as far as helping Draco Malfoy maintain hold of some legitimate companies his family had held. After the war, all properties and holdings of Death Eaters, including bank accounts, were seized by the Ministry to fund the reconstruction of buildings destroyed during the battle, the way of life for the wizarding community, and even some funds were directed towards Muggles that had suffered. Combined with the Fund Ginny had set-up, many people had been able to start rebuilding their lives. Harry had convinced the Ministry that some leniency should be put forth to protect unsuspecting family members, or in Draco's case, those that helped them defeat the Dark Lord. Although Draco and his mom had lost three quarters of their holdings after the sweep, they were still considered quite wealthy. They did not waste anytime though in securing their future, as they greedily bought up seized assets from the ministry. It had been quite a rare sight to see both Harry and Draco at the opening ceremony for the new Butterbeer factory near London. When it was discovered that Voldemort, through front companies, owned the rights to Butterbeer, the Ministry decided to hold an auction for it. As many foreign interests started looking towards buying the rights, Harry and Draco decided to put forth a legitimate bid to keep Butterbeer an English company. Their success helped establish a new movement, as both were able to put aside their 'school' differences to make things work. Draco was now the main person at the Butterbeer Company, as Harry did not want to partake in the day-to-day running of the company and stayed on as a silent partner.

Ron looked at the time and discovered it was already eleven thirty. Finishing up the last of the paperwork and placing it in the done pile, he left his temporary office and made his way out. He could see the clean up crew making great progress. He smiled, as he knew most of the garbage was recyclable and would not harm the environment. Hermione had suggested that, as the Muggle world was heavy into recycling, that maybe we should too. Ron had ensured that all vendors followed strict guidelines as to the material they used. As Ron made it outside the stadium, he had to concentrate hard to ensure he didn't splinch himself, hoping that a warm bath and a nap would prepare him for tonight's party.

Back at Godric Hollow, Harry and Ginny arrived to a room full of decorations. Since Dobby was not restricted to the wards at the stadium, he immediately came back and prepared for Harry's arrival. In the short time it took Harry and Ginny to make it back, Dobby had started cooking some breakfast, and he also prepared a steaming bath for two. Dobby felt the two arrive and popped over to see them. As Dobby could sense Harry and Ginny arrive, so could Harry sense Dobby.

"Hello Dobby, did you enjoy the game? By the way, we will be having guest coming over tonight. Now, that bacon is calling for me, so let's eat."

Ginny and Dobby just stared at Harry as he started to eat. They could not believe he still had energy to eat after what he had endured. Ginny felt her stomach growl and dug in to eat. Once done, they went upstairs where they took a leisurely whirlpool bath. Harry had found a way to enchant their bath to act as a whirlpool, which they had both found very relaxing.

While relaxing, Ginny leaned over and kissed him. He kissed her back more passionately, which started rapidly to escalate into a very energetic love making session, ending as quickly as it had started. They toweled themselves off and went into the bedroom. As both got into bed, Ginny climbed on top of Harry and whispered to him that it was her turn to enjoy the ride. Harry just closed his eyes and smiled. Ginny noticed Harry smile as he closed his eyes and picked up the pace.

After a short period of time, "Harry, are you asleep? Harry?" Ginny didn't know what to do, as this had never happened before, and as she was so close to reaching her peak, she just kept on going; I mean, was is a girl suppose to do in that kind of situation. Once done, she slipped off him and cuddled up, quickly falling off to a deep, dreamless sleep.


	6. Draco's Stock Goes Up

Chapter 6

Draco's Stock Goes Up!

Disclaimer: own nothing but a few plotting Hobgoblins

The summer after fifth year was not all that great for Draco. He and his mom spent a lot of time tying up loose ends, separating estates (Narcissa had a fortune of her own), as Lucius was now in the hands of the authority. Draco loved his mom and would do anything for her, but he feared his dad, and he knew that when the ministry started to investigate, they would find plenty of evidence of his family's involvement with the Dark Lord, which will upset his dad, when he escaped. Draco never voiced his concerns about his dad breaking out. His father was the only one involved with the Dark Lord in the Malfoy family, although it was rumored that his grandfather had been a supporter. Narcissa had seen it coming in the past year, and moved quickly with the plan she had developed in secret. Draco had been quite upset at discovering that it was Potter and his friends' fault that his father was imprisoned, but when questioning his mom about what they were going to do about Harry, his mother was very clear with her response.

"Draco, you must listen and understand what I am going to tell you, as it is not going to be easy for you. Your father has chosen a path that has led him to where he is today. He knew, or should have known, the consequences of his actions. He is not being controlled by Him, but is doing it of his own volition. He was bested by kids your age, and got caught. We must accept this and move on; put your rivalry aside and understand, or you too will end up on the short end of the stick. Soon you will be asked to kiss His hand and take on the Mark. This will be your choice to make, and yours only; but make no mistake that once you do, you will never be allowed to come back."

Draco listened, but could not understand, as the feelings of hate he felt for Harry overwhelmed him. Near the end of summer, the ministry let it be known of its intent to seize the assets of convicted Death Eaters. The Malfoy estate was to be one of the first to be investigated. The inquisitors arrived the day Draco left for school.

On the way he met up with Crabbe and Goyle and they boarded the train going back to Hogwarts. Draco did not waste any time as he sought out Potter and his group of friends. Spotting them, he turned to his flunkies and said, "this time, we get some revenge". Both idiots chuckled and prepared to back him up. Inside the room were Harry, Ginny, Ron, Hermione, Luna and Neville: the group that got his father in prison.

"Potter, you're going to pay for what you did to my father!"

Harry just looked at Draco and smiled. In a soft but commanding voice he said, "I have bigger fish to fry then you Draco. If I were you, I would quickly decide whose side your on before someone makes that decision for you. You do not want to end up like your father, or even dead do you?" As he spoke, his green eyes bored into Draco, making him feel as if he was looking straight into his soul and judging him. Draco was so furious at the feeling of being judged by Potter, that he started to think about hexing Harry, but even before the command left his brain and reached his voice, Harry flicked his wand casually (no one had seen him pull it out, it just kind of appeared) and closed the door and cast a rebounding charm on the door. Draco and his friends all cast stunning spells at Harry (since no one anticipating the door closing), which just rebounded back at them, stunning all three. Harry turned back and continued chatting with the rest of his friends as if nothing had happened. After about fifteen minutes later, some Slytherins came by and got Draco and his flunkies up and back to their own room on the train.

Throughout the first month, Draco decided to change strategies and keep an eye on Harry a bit more to find a weakness and prepare for an ambush. He still could not believe Harry had been so fast on drawing his wand back on the train, and that maybe it had just been an illusion of some sort cast before he and his goons had arrived. Watching Harry, he seemed to have grown like the rest of the boys from the same year, but the difference with him was he also seemed to have broadened quite a bit, walking lightly on his feet like some of those people Draco had seen at Muggle movie theaters. He also appeared to have gained that air of extreme confidence in himself, which made many of the witches (and some wizards) stare in awe. He had decided one day to start testing Harry's defenses when he cast a very minor hex at Harry from behind his own invisibility cloak. He had been far enough away, as he knew Harry could somehow detect him if he was too close. His aim had been true, timed just so that the direction would be camouflaged, but as the spell approached, Harry erected a shield spell without anyone noticing, and then he dispelled the spell after it bounced, so that no one would get hit. Harry then spun around looking for the culprit. His eyes settled on Draco's, making Draco sweat just a little, but Harry just bowed slightly and winked at him.

Draco needed more information, and since the DA had started up again with Dumbledore's blessing, he decided to request permission to join, which was granted immediately by Harry. After a few sessions, Draco noticed that the main group of six stayed behind for a bit after, exiting completely fatigued, except for Harry who just looked a little disheveled. Draco also noticed that Harry had an eye for Ginny, especially after one weekend where the group had disappeared and came back looking a little beat up. After one of the sessions of the DA, Malfoy snuck back in and hid in the corner to watch what happened, and what he saw was amazing.

It started of with the group creating a real fighting environment, with chairs, tables, books, statues, and dishes. Then the group teamed up against the other, with real hexes flying out. Each combat lasted five minutes before they changed teams again. Then after three different matches, Harry went at it alone against the group, and to Draco's amazement, he took them all out, even after being hit by a Jelly Leg spell from Ginny, which only affected him partially for reasons he did not know then, but discovered later that Harry wore Dragon skin pants underneath his robes. Neville had also hit Harry with a stunning spell, but with no affect. Ron and Luna were clearly the weak link in their group, but by far better then anyone else in school. Hermione, clearly the smartest witch at school, did not cast as many spells as the rest, but they were clearly powerful and varied. She never cast the same spell twice, and often more to affect Harry's movement or decision making. In the end, the group left, and as Harry was about to follow the group out, he mentioned something about catching up to them later. He turned back towards the center of the room and said, "Learn anything new?" He was talking directly to Draco.

Puffing out his chest and putting on a smug look, Draco took off the invisibility cloak, "That was nice demonstration Potter, do it all just for me?"

Harry got that smile he had on the train and looked at Draco, and Draco could just look at Harry's green eyes, noting for the first time that he did not wear his glasses during DA sessions. Harry just kept on smiling and said, "let's talk". Harry pulled out his wand, and with a few twists and flicks, created a couple of comfortable chairs near the fireplace, with a small table in between. The table had some food and a pitcher of pumpkin juice on it with glasses. The clutter in the room disappeared and light dimmed so that most of the light came from the fireplace, giving it a comfortable atmosphere. Liking what he saw, Harry sad down in one of the comfortable chair and poured two glasses of juice, offering one to Draco. Draco just kept on looking at Harry, transfixed with his eyes, and sat down, picking up a cookie and taking a bite out of it. Once Draco was sitting, Harry then proceeded to put his glasses on, which surprised Draco, taking him out of his reverie. Harry shrugged and answered "I still need to wear them once in a while." Draco looked around and noticed where he was, and was about to leave, when Harry asked him to listen to him for two minutes. Draco, looking for options, agreed. Draco had been a little nervous lately as he had not heard from his mom since leaving for school. He had heard that things were going poorly for them, but nothing more then that.

"So Draco, tell me what's on your mind."

"Why do you care? It seems to me that everything is going your way: Captain of the Quidditch team, Prefect, you have your own followers hanging on every word you speak. You have all the girls you want, all the money..." At this, Harry gave him a quizzical look.

"Draco, this might all be true, except the money part. Both Sirius's and my parents money is nowhere near the Malfoy's estate, even after the ministry is through with it."

"What do you know about what is happening with that?"

"I know that they have keeping your mom under house arrest until all this is settled, and that they are finding many 'questionable' things; other then that, not much more. If you want, I can make some inquires, even get a letter to your mom if you want. If it's money you need, I can..."

"I don't want your money."

"Well, what is it you do need? You might not have noticed, but things are really brewing out there. The line in the sand has been drawn, its time people make a stand. You have the chance to decide for yourself; you have not taken the Mark as both Crabbe and Goyle have." This time it was Draco who gave him that look.

"They were 'marked' before the start of the school year. Have you not noticed them hanging around Pansy more and more?"

"I thought it was because she put out, and liked them big and dumb."

Harry chuckled at this, "they were told to keep an eye on you and to take direction from her. By Halloween, you will be forced to decide. I can help protect you, but only if you are ready to help us in return. In fact, I am prepared to help you out now as a measure of good faith. The headmaster will announce that students will be allowed to visit Hogsmeade this Saturday. Meet me at the Three Broomsticks at 10, alone."

"And why should I do that?"

"Because I am your only hope."

With that, Harry got up and walked out of the room, leaving Malfoy to ponder some more. The next day, like clockwork, Dumbledore announced the Hogsmeade visit. Malfoy was quiet during the next few days, contemplating his discussion with Harry. He had also noticed that Crabbe and Goyle now kept an eye on him, instead of walking with him, and that Pansy would often whisper to them while looking straight at him. That Saturday, he left early so as to be able to lose his tail; the frustrating part was that it had been so easy that he had to sit around and wait a full hour before Harry arrived. With just a nod, he indicated for him to follow him out to room in the back. He followed him out to the back where he met Remus Lupin and another, who Harry introduced as Kingsley Shackelbolt.

Remus spoke up, "Mister Malfoy, we will be taking you to see your mother now, so that we may talk in private. As you are aware, or not, Harry here has been petitioning on your behalf to try and alleviate some of the issues revolving around your family estate. If you would please take hold of this Portkey, we will be under way." Looking at Harry with a little suspicion in his eyes, he took hold of an old hat and all four were transported back to Malfoy Manor. He found his mother with a a few other Aurors around. He hugged his mom, and being the proud man, hid his tears from the rest.

Narcissa looked up to Harry, "thank you Harry for helping me bring him home. You have been wonderful. Now Draco, we do not have a lot of time, as no one is to know you have come here." Leading the group to the study, she had Draco sit behind the desk. "Son, do you recognize any of those documents?"

"Yes I do. These are some of the companies dad owns. Why?"

"What can you tell me about them?"

Picking up one of the documents, he started to point out the insignia at the top, "This is the head of dad's Muggle head office here in London. We went there once last year. He was showing me around at all the Muggles that were working for him. He was quite proud that through this company, he was controlling companies around the world. It is a legal company, as far as I know. Why?"

Kingsley stepped forward. "The company is very legal; unfortunately, it is being used to hurt Muggles. Through this company, he is able to control almost 20 sweat shops from around the world. We also think he is playing a role in the trafficking of Blood Diamonds out of war torn Africa. The problem we have is that we are unable to find this building, as we have searched everywhere in London, but we cannot find it. Can you help us with this?"

"This company represents a very large portion of our Muggle holdings. How do I know you're not just looking to take everything away from us? How do I know the Ministry isn't just trying to fatten its purse?"

"The Ministry is not above the law, but if this company is causing harm to Muggles, we must put an end to it. All we can promise is that anything legal, in both Muggle and Wizard world, will remain untouched, but everything else must be stopped."

"I want some time to think about it. You are asking quite a bit much. If my father discovers that I helped you out, my life is forfeit."

"I understand your situation, but one way or another, this matter must be resolved. You have twenty four hours to decide. We will see you in professor Dumbledore's office. Please consider that this act will go a long way within us."

"I am not sure the Ministry can do anything for us?"

"I was not talking about the Ministry, I was talking about the Order."

With that, Remus handed a piece of cloth to Harry and told them the Portkey would transport them behind the Three Broomsticks. With that, Draco kissed his mom goodbye, and together with Harry, they both arrived behind the Three Broomsticks and made their way back to Hogwarts.

On the way, Harry spoke up, "this would be a great way to help us out."

"And what do I get in return?"

"How about a clear conscious for once?"

"And why do I need a clear conscious?" And with that, Draco split up with Harry upon entering the school and headed for the dungeon level, and Slytherin's common room. Harry shrugged and went directly to Dumbledore's to report.

The next morning, Draco received a package during mail call. Harry noticed that after he opened the package, the color drained from his face. Draco left the table quickly and headed back towards the dungeon level. Harry looked towards Dumbledore, who then indicated to Snape that he should investigate. Breakfast was quickly finished, and before Professor McGonagall could approach Harry to invite him to the headmaster's quarters, Harry was already on his way.

Snape caught up with Draco, somewhere near the Potion Masters classroom. Snape asked, "what seems the problem, Mister Malfoy?"

"I think we'd better see Harry and the Headmaster about this."

"Follow me."

Snape took Draco the long way around, ensuring they went through passages seldom used by students. They arrived at the Headmasters quarters and moved up the rotating staircase. Professor McGonagall, Remus, Tonks, and Harry were sitting and discussing something. As soon as Draco arrived, the talked stopped to look at him. Without wasting time, he pulled out the letter and read it: "Son, I have been freed from Azkaban and will need your assistance in clearing up a few matters. Go to the Three Broomsticks tonight at 8 PM with both Crabbe and Goyle, someone with an orange hat will meet you; follow him, and he will transport you to me. We will then discuss the issue of your mom' treacherous ways. Signed Lucius." Draco folded up the letter very carefully and placed it in a pocket. He then turn towards the group, looking at directly at Harry, "You want my help, it will cost you? You get my mom out alive, and I will tell you everything I know about my dad and his businesses. Now I have to go to Arithmacy class, so please excuse me. I want to hear a plan by noon today, or I will have to go to my father alone and try to rescue my mom."

The morning went very slowly for Draco, and as lunch approached, he realized he had lost his appetite. While making his way to the Slitherin tables, he noticed Ginny Weasley approaching him with what appeared to be a small piece of paper in the palm of her hand. As he passed her without a glance, he felt rather then saw her place it in one of his robes pockets. It was so well done, that it took him a few minutes to find it. 'Be at Potions five minutes early'. Draco had a light lunch and went to Potions as told. Here, he met with Snape and Harry and they went over the plan. Before the students arrived, the plan was accepted.

That night, there was a DA meeting, but when Draco arrived, Harry was missing. Many of the students wondered where he was, but with Hermione leading the session on shields, everyone just seemed to follow along. At around seven thirty, Draco looked around but did not see Harry anywhere, so he made his way out and met up with Crabbe and Goyle. They were very distant, not even acknowledging him, and Draco felt more as prisoner being led then anything else. As they approached one of the secret passages out of the school, they heard a shout from behind and saw Harry running towards them. Not wasting a moment, Draco lifted his wand and cast a blasting charm at Harry, knocking him off his feet and over the banister. "Let's go before anyone else approaches". With a stunned look on their face, Crabbe and Goyle followed Draco to Honeyduke's, then to the Three Broomsticks. As they were early, Draco bought them all a drink. At eight, a man in an orange hat approached them and they followed him out. From there, they took a Portkey to wherever. They arrived in an old manor, covered in dust and cobwebs. They walked into a room containing a few Death Eaters and Lucius, sitting at the end of an ornate table, eating a meal. Upon seeing his son, Lucius took on an icy smile and walked towards him. From about five feet away, he pulled out his wand and cast 'Crucio'. Crabbe and Goyle both laughed at seeing Draco writhe on the floor.

"Now, what it is it I'm hearing about you and your mother?" as he lifted the curse, and motioned to a pair of Death Eaters to bring in his wife. She looked the worse for wear. Her clothes were torn, her face carried some discoloration, and she seemed to holding her left arm. Draco resisted the temptation to run towards her, and just stood there catching his breath.

Crabbe then spoke up, "Sir he did manage to knock Harry off the banister from the third story."

To which he replied, "Did you see him hit the ground?"

"No sir, we had to leave quickly."

Without hesitation, Lucius cast the Cruatius Curse at Crabbe, then Goyle. "Next time, check. Now Draco, what about my question? What are you and your mother doing collaborating with the ministry? Do you not think I would not find out? Of course not, you both are nothing more then morons, leaching off my hard work. It is a pity, you were going to be offered a chance to join me to fight alongside my Master, but alas, this stupidity of yours has cost you both your retched lives." Crabbe took a hold of Draco, and Goyle took out Draco's wand and handed it to Lucius.

"This is not your wand, where is it?"

"I find it works better then the one you gave me, as it is less foul," replied Draco.

"You little toad, that was my father's wand. You are not even worth being called a Malfoy." He pointed the wand at his son, and with a cruel smile he said "Avada Kedavra"

Nothing happened.

At first.

Then the wand shot back at the caster a goop of slim, similar to ectoplasm, which encompassed Lucius, then solidified him into a cocoon, with the hand and the wand still pointing out. Draco grabbed his mom and threw her to the ground just as the wand exploded, knocking out both Death Eaters who had brought Narcissa, and Crabbe and Goyle. Shouts could be heard, with running steps coming towards the noise of the explosion. Draco cast a hex on the cocoon, then left a few little surprises for anyone left, like replacing some of the wands with trick ones; Fred and Georges had some real nifty stuff. As he approached Narcissa with the Portkey, she smiled and lifted his hair off his face, looking at the lightning bolt scar of Harry's. Kissing him on the cheek, she thanked him and took hold of the Portkey. They both disappeared before anyone got there on time.

They had not killed Lucius, although he did lose his hand in the explosion. It will also take quite a bit of time to get him out. They were also able to find the home used, and many Death Eaters had been arrested, including Crabbe and Goyle. Narcissa stayed at Hogwarts for a few days, before leaving for someplace only Dumbledore knew of. Although saddened by her departure, Draco was more then happy to know she was safe. Working with the Aurors, they were able to identify all of Lucius' companies and seize almost everything. In return, with Harry's influence, many of the assets were separated to ensure that not only the Malfoy's, but also any other family would not suffer for the poor choice their family members took.

Sixth year ended well for Draco, returning to his mom for the summer, even meeting up with Harry and friends, using the excuse to celebrate his birthday as way of ensuring the estate was still safe.

Seventh year saw a new and more relaxed Draco. In exchange for the help Harry gave him in training, Draco helped Harry out with business planning. Hogwarts was not well suited to teach anyone about running a business, and although Harry spent a bit of time with Fred and George, Draco's knowledge of business was quite advanced. Draco even managed to get Harry to take Arithmacy in seventh year. Although Draco had become a staunch supporter of Harry's during his battle with Voldemort, he still competed against him at everything else.

During one Quidditch match against Gryffindor, he had bet Harry that it was his Firebolt that made him great. Harry had switched brooms and taken an old Nova 87. Everyone thought it was funny at first when the broom hardly moved at Harry's request, but when the Snitch appeared, Harry used his own internal power to get the broom going. He still managed to catch the snitch, although the broom was left smoking quite badly. Since he had won the bet, Draco died his hair Gryffindor gold and maroon, and wore it like a Mohawk for the rest of the week.

In DA, Draco had really improved, to the point he actually stayed behind to fight Harry. By then, even with some teachers, Harry was unbeatable, with most curses not affecting him at all. By this time, Harry had discovered his Phoenix form, and although he kept that secret from anyone but his inner circle of friends, he still enjoyed flying while fighting. Draco and Hermione found an old spell that allowed the caster to fly, but the spell only lasted a few minutes, unless he remained in concentration.

Draco had pointed out to Harry that some of the members might be better at fighting different things then other casters like Death Eaters. He used Hermione and Susan as an example of witches who could let loose a lot of spells, but were more effective casting longer, more powerful spells, and that spell casters like Neville, Ginny, Collin, and himself were more capable of handling multiple opponents. Justin, Blaise, and a fourth year student named Marissa were very advanced in Care of Magical Creatures, and so best suited to tangle with any Dark Creatures. Harry used this information to modify their training schedule, having them work in their respective groups half the time, while the other half was spent as group planning over strategies, and looking over new spells. Although Neville and Ginny were by far the better casters over Draco, Draco still had that leadership ability, and the capacity to see the goal with all of hell breaking loose.

Before the Christmas break, Voldemort decided to test Hogwarts defense. While all the students were preparing to leave, Voldemort sprung a surprise attack on Hogsmeade, drawing some teachers and Harry to investigate and fight. While that was happening, another group rushed out of the Forbidden Forest and attacked the school. Draco had just been walking near the lake when the attack started; he was able to contact Hermione and Neville to prepare the DA group for the attack, since he knew Harry and the teachers would not be back in time to help fight. It was a stunning victory for the students of the DA as no one was killed, although many were injured as the younger students were running around in a panicked state. Unfortunately, things did not go well for the teachers, as Dumbledore himself was seriously injured when he took on 8 Vampires before anyone could help. It was Harry who saw him go down and attacked with his Phoenix form. Some of the Death Eaters had escaped though, so news of Dumbledore's injury and Harry Phoenix form would become valuable information for Voldemort. Draco had proved himself capable in battle, and was then included in Harry's middle circle, which included most of the teachers and members of the Order.

Although many used the holidays as a time to recover, including Dumbledore, Draco used it as a time to gather information. He had convinced Harry that even though Voldemort received some valuable information, he still lost both battles, especially the one at the school, and that a counterstrike would hurt him more so. He told him that the fear of death might persuade some of His followers to rethink their allegiance, or at least not worth the cost involved. Harry had taken this idea to Dumbledore and the Order. It was agreed upon that the group would shift gears and become more proactive in their fight, not allowing Voldemort to regain strength.

The plan seemed to work, with Harry and his group lending a hand when needed. Draco pointed out that he would focus his attention to Voldemort's source of funding, trying to cut off his sources. Draco had taken some of the DA group who had shown a flair for this type of work, including Susan Bones, who he was now dating.

In the early spring, Dumbledore invited Giranose Frodinus, the world's best Wizard Chess player to attend a small tournament that was going to be held for all students and teachers of Hogwarts. There was going to be 2 formats, regular and speed; the winner of each would then each play Giranose. Speed Wizard's Chess was adapted from the Muggle form of Speed Chess. Some of the notables that entered the classic format were of course Ginny and Ron, with Susan Bones, Professors Snape and McGonagall, and Draco. In the Speed Chess, Harry had put his name down, and since everyone wanted to compare themselves to Harry, many of the students also signed up. The result of the Speed Chess took no guesswork as Harry blew everyone away, sometimes winning in 9 moves that were done so fast, students would be questioning their thirty seconds of shame; although Harry did congratulate each one for trying, making it worth it for the student. Giranose actually put up a good match, but as he was more of a classic Wizard Chess player and not a Speed player, he also succumbed to Harry. For the regular match, the last remaining four were Ron versus Snape and Draco versus McGonagall. Both Ron and Draco won their respective matches, although it took Draco nearly four hours to win. Ron then went on to win against Draco, but when talking Hermione, he confessed to her that the match could have easily gone the other way, and that Draco's stock had gone up as far as Ron was concerned. Ron did lose against Giranose in a close match, making Giranose actually sweat. He told both Ron and Draco that he was looking forward to seeing both at the next World Championship in four years.

By the late spring, Harry had been going out every weekend to help with the attacks, then working with Draco during the week to help coordinate those raids on Voldemorts and his Death Eaters assets. Draco had questioned Harry about taking time to study, voicing the concerns of the rest of inner circle. Harry confessed to them all that he had already done his Newt exams the Sunday after the Chess tournament using Hermione's time turner. It had been kept a secret by Dumbledore, at Harry's request to ensure his full attention went towards fighting Voldemort's support. Draco seized this information to push Harry further into assisting him, even pushing for Harry to try and use his mind connection to Voldemort to get more information, although it was revealed that Voldemorts did not have a clear understanding of finances, and let Lucius manage most of it.

In the end, Draco helped uncover the Butterbeer connection to Voldemort and other large assets. This in turn caused Voldemort to attack Hogwarts prematurely as he knew his funds were at a critical level, and although casualties were high on both sides, the end result was that Voldemort was defeated, and that many different people were able to put things to rest; Voldemort unfortunately killed Dumbledore, as he had not fully recovered from the attack before Christmas and would not listen to anyone, Neville killed Bellatrix, Draco killed his father, and Harry killed Voldemort. During the battle, Harry had actually never referred to him as Voldemort, but as simply Tom Riddle. Harry had explained to Draco and his group that Voldemort was just a name used, just like American wrestlers use names like Stone Cold, or The Rock; Tom Riddle was his real identity, and that is what Harry concentrated on. In the end, Tom's body was burned with the rest of the Death Eaters that died during the final battle. Draco used a Fire Bomb spell to light his father's pyre.

One year later, Draco is engaged to Susan Bones, he runs one of largest corporations in the Wizarding world, and is still very competitive with Harry.


	7. Hidden Treasures

Chapter 7

Hidden Treasure

Disclaimer: Own nothing but a few Hobgoblins preparing to come out and play. More mature subject, reader discretion is advised. Thanks for the reviews.

Harry's manor was in a frantic state, with Elves running around preparing the house for a small feast. All the Elves were from Hogwart's, at the request of Dobby, who jumped at the chance to help out Harry Potter; Dobby did have to promise them that they would not be forced to receive gifts of clothes. Dobby had placed Silence Charms on the outside of Harry's bedroom door so as to not bother the sleeping couple. Dobby, equipped with his own whistle, was acting as the foreman, conducting traffic as best he could, but it still looked like one of Rome's famous traffic circles. Platters of food were being prepared, with warming spells cast on the plates to keep them warm. Dobby looked at the large clock in the main room, knowing there was not a lot of time left.

Bong! Bong! Bong! Bong! Bong! Bong!

Harry willed the noise to stop, and it did. He could feel Ginny smothering him, her nakedness pressing against his flesh, making him feel good and comfortable; he imagined it was like being back in his mothers womb. Most Wizards slept clothed, but Ginny and Harry felt it more natural to be in the buff, especially when the air was cool, which it was even in the middle of the summer being higher up in the mountain. Harry did not want to move; life was perfect just the way things were. Of course, if he shifted her a bit, he might be able cup her breast, maybe even tweak a nipple. A soft moan escaped from her lips, but he was sure she was still asleep, maybe even dreaming. He decided to help her dream along, and kept kneading her breast the way she liked. Soon her body responded, her moans increased, and her breath came in short gasps; it quickly escalated, her body going rigid, and a sweet smile graced her beautiful face. He placed a kiss on her forehead, and lightly shook her, "wake up love, we have to wash up and prepare to receive our guests. I'm not sure your mom would approve of our state of clothing, or lack there of."

Ginny's eyes opened slowly, like she was unsure of the light's effect, but luckily only what filtered through the curtains. She asked Harry what time it was.

"It is six o'clock. Our guests will be arriving within the hour, and from the smell of things cooking, we will be eating a feast tonight. Now, we need to get washed up, as I am stickier then that glue charm your brother tried that time against your mom's garden Gnomes, and we need to be presentable for our guests tonight."

Ginny slowly detached herself from Harry, put on a bathrobe and made her way to the bathroom, still a little shaky from her dream. Harry soon followed and thirty minutes later, they were downstairs preparing to greet their guests, and although most were very close friends and family, she still felt the need to play the part of Harry's wife, the Lady of the Potter household she told herself. She knew that the time would come where etiquette demanded much show, but she also knew that Harry was not Draco, and things like that would be kept to a minimal.

The guests soon arrived and the party, although subdued, was full of laughter and joy, especially with the combinations of the Canons winning the cup, Harry proposing to Ginny, and Harry revealing his business interests to the world. A special edition of the Prophet, which the twins brought with them, indicated that Harry was one of the richest men in England, with the front page claiming 'The Boy Who Did It, Does It Again and Again!'. Harry had made the party a bit official when he handed over a portion of the winnings to his team members, as a bonus. The party lasted late, but the combination of lack of sleep, the booze and the fact it was three in the morning, everyone was leaving. Harry offered Ron and Hermione one of the spare bedrooms (the only other bedroom in a livable condition), as they were in no condition to Disparate.

The next morning saw all four sitting around the small breakfast table quietly eating, except for Ron stuffing himself like it was his last meal.

"So Harry, what did you want to talk about?" Hermione asked, looking disapprovingly at Ron. Ron just shrugged and used some pumpkin juice to help him swallow it all.

"Yeah mate, what's up?"

"Well Ron, this might come as a shocker to you, but I was thinking of wedding bells and rice."

Ron became very quiet, wishing something would happen so that he could escape. He wanted to get married, but was never sure how to do it. Thankfully Hermione broke the silence.

"Well Harry, I am sure that you and Ginny will have some planning to do..."

Harry went to cut her off, and when he looked to Ginny, she gave him a slight nod as to go ahead and proceed.

"Listen you two, I was thinking that since it took Ron forever to build up the courage to ask you out, I would forego the 'forever' and ask the both of you if you would like to do a double wedding? I actually was planning on doing it on September first, at Hogwarts. I mean we practically are of all the same family. We could even ask Neville and Luna and make it a triple, and how about Draco and Susan and make it a quadruple? Just kidding Ron. It would be great, and with security already pretty high at the school, it would not raise any problems for the Ministry. How about it?"

Ron just stared at Harry, then he looked over to his sister who looked quite amused, then to Hermione, who was struggling with her emotions. Ron just sighed, as he knew that Harry had again enabled Ron to follow the path to make things right. Before Hermione could say anything, Ron reached over, took Hermione's hands in his and asked, "Hermione, I don't know what I would do without you, I don't even know why you stay with me, but I do l-love you, and would you, um, marry me?"

Hermione just stared at Ron; having resolved herself early in her relationship to Ron, that things took a great deal of time to be resolved with him; Harry had hit the nail squarely on the head. They had been under some pressure from their respective families to get married, although less so from Hermione's parents as they had lived together before marrying. The Wizarding world still held onto higher moral standards, although they too were changing slowly. Hermione was a little irked that Ron needed Harry to help their relationship, but then she had to admit the end result was justified.

"I love you too Ron, and I would marry you."

With that, the couple exchanged hugs and congratulations.

"Come on Ron give her a kiss at least, and not one of those you give mom, but one that will make her curl her toes." Which he then proceeded to do, making both turn a beet red.

"So, now that we have that cleared up, let me know by weeks end what you decide."

Hermione spoke up, after wiping her tears of joy, "we will Harry. Now, we better be off, as we both have actual jobs and need to change before heading in."

"Yeah mate, not like we can stand around all day counting our fortunes, like someone I know. By-the-way, what do you do all day?"

"Oh, you know Ron, Ginny and I will probably have sex most of the morning, maybe stroll around naked in the garden for lunch, and maybe sex in the afternoon. Who knows?"

Ron just stared at Harry, mouth open and had that dazed look like a deer in headlights. Ginny thought it was great idea, while Hermione chuckled, dragging Ron out of the kitchen. She finally got him to snap out of it, by giving him a very deep kiss, making him turn all shades of red for the second time this morning. As he stammered out a good bye, trying to hide his obvious discomfort in his pants, Hermione told Harry that he was going to have to stop the mental abuse he was causing his future brother-in-law. Harry jabbed back a comment to the effect that his attacks would be twofold for family members. After laughing with them a bit at Ron's expense, Harry and Ginny went upstairs to carry out the idea of having sex most of the day, lounging around the small lake (pond) a good part of the afternoon.

The week went by very quickly, as both fell into a good routine of working all morning on the house, taking a light lunch and a swim in the nearby pond, then going back into the grind of rebuilding the house until suppertime. Harry had let Dobby go and visit friends and family for the next few weeks, so Harry had taken to bringing Ginny to some nice restaurants throughout London, since he did not have time or energy to make the meals himself. They also went to a few dance clubs, but the hard work during day ensured that the couple returned at reasonable hours. On the Wednesday, Harry got an Owl from Mrs. Weasley inviting them over for a Sunday family diner to discuss the upcoming nuptials. Harry decided to go away for the weekend and go down to Nice in France to a health spa that was dedicated to Wizards and Witches looking for a little break. As Remus also pointed out with a smirk, they were very discrete. Harry sent Hedwig with a letter letting the spa know that he would be coming down Friday night. Harry went back to work, not telling Ginny, and making it a surprise. Figuring he could not Apparate there directly, he contacted Tonks at the ministry to see if she could prepare a Portkey for him, as he trusted her to keep this quiet, which of course she teased him about not wanting Dad to know what was going on between him and his little girl.

Friday morning, Harry went back to working on the house, not telling Ginny what the plans were, and keeping them busy until well past there regular diner time. When Ginny commented that she was really tired, the timing could not have been better, as an Auror arrived with a package. Ginny was surprised to see a junior member of the Order arrive, and a little suspicious that Harry wasn't as surprised.

Once the Auror left, Harry approached Ginny with a guilty smile and asked, "You busy this weekend?"

"Well I'm not sure, as my future husband seems to be planning on something? What do you have in mind?"

"Your mom owled us an invitation to diner on Sunday, so I was thinking that we could maybe go away for the weekend and go directly to your mom's on Sunday."

"And where would you take me?"

"I was thinking of a place in Nice, some health spa that is supposed to rejuvenate the person in body, spirit, and magic, or that's what the pamphlet."

"Nice! Oh I heard so much about it. It's supposed to be a very good place for couples to...How do you know of this place?"

"Um, I'm not sure I remember. Does it matter? I thought it would be nice, you know, just the two of us. We could bring back some sand in a bottle..."

"Harry!"

"Oh all right. At the start of sixth year, Marissa Sands and Julia Charles asked me if I wanted to spend the weekend with them in Nice. They left me a pamphlet with information, and that's where I got the information. I had asked Dumbledore about it, and even though their security level was very high, that I should not chance it, but he did say that he had enjoyed that spa often in his days, and recommended that I visit it once things calmed down. So I think now would be a good time."

"Those girls were in seventh year, and you were going to go with them?"

"Hold on a second missy 'I dated more then you did', one, we were not going out at the time, and two, I just wanted to relax. Anyways, just so you know, speaking as a guy, the thought of being with two women is a very powerful motivator, but not nearly powerful enough of being with you and of never talking about it again." And with a low remorseful voice he said, "I love you and always will."

"Actually Harry, I'm just teasing. I already knew they had asked you to join them somewhere, I just didn't know where. I was quite jealous, but could not have blamed you, as they were quite attractive and willing to do anything for you, and growing up with 6 other boys, I know you guys think of sex all the time. Anyways, I would love to go. What about clothing?"

"You are a sneak Ginny. I thought we could just get something there."

And with that, Harry cast an alarm spell, activating the protective spells for his home, and took a hold of Ginny's hand as both took hold of the Portkey and disappeared.

The start of the weekend was quite a bit of a surprise to both Ginny and Harry, as they discovered most people walked around nude. They decided to walk up the beach towards the muggle side and discovered the same thing, or nearly the same. Ginny commented that they might have well been nude as the material barely covered anything at all. Harry never said anything; as he just enjoyed the view and thought it prudent keep quiet about it. The funny thing was, as they were walking back, they stopped at a few boutiques to browse and Ginny ended up buying quite a few different 'bathing suits' and apparels, to which Harry did not complain.

The rest of the weekend went by quickly and Harry and Ginny left for England and the Burrow. They had both gotten a very good tan, although Ginny did have a bit of pink to hers. Both showed renewed vigor that made their skin glow. The rest of the Weasleys were amazed at the way the couple acted as if they had been together for thirty years, often completing the others sentence, like Fred and George did, but at a deeper level. Supper had gone well, with the women making plans to start shopping for dresses and stuff. Although both Mrs. Weasley and Mrs. Granger thought September first was a bit soon for the wedding, Harry held his ground. Harry also explained that due to the fact he was a Lord, certain protocols had to be observed, including asking for the Queen herself to bless the marriage. He told them that Mr. Evans would be involved in that part of the preparations, including setting up a meeting with the Queen. Everyone around the table were shocked to know that royalty might be involved, which only seemed to bring things to a more heated discussion as for the preparations. When Harry asked Fred and George if they would be interested in participating in the wedding, they refused, citing that this was a bit more then they wanted, and would look at a smaller venue a little later.

The women discussed the issue late into the night, while the men were outside, trying Mr. Weasley's new muggle toy, a Frisbee. Although Harry and Mr. Granger had no difficulty, the rest of the boys were having difficulty making it go. Ron got bit frustrated when he did not notice the twins casting a weight spell on the Frisbee when Ron would throw it. This caused a lot of laughs, and the night ended when Mr. Weasley took the disk away to his shop before Ron could blow it up. Before Harry and Ginny left, Hermione told Harry that she would have some information tomorrow about his 'locked' door in the lower levels of his house. Ginny invited them over for supper tomorrow night and they could look over the information.

The next day, both Harry and Ginny stayed indoors recovering from the weekend, as the day was filled with rain. They took the time to evaluate the progress they had made with the repairs to the home from the past week. Harry also took the time to prepare the evening meal as Dobby was still out. He was trying out a new recipe he got from a muggle book on French cuisine, as Ginny was fond of the thick creamy sauces that were associated with it. At around six, Harry felt the proximity spell go off indicating that his two guests had arrived. As this spell was attuned to both he and Ginny, both moved towards the reception area. Soon the two couples were sitting at the dinner table talking away, with a good bottle of red wine awaiting the meal. As usual, Ron stomach growled its intention as Harry went to retrieve the meal. Although the meal did not comprise of the large assortment of food usually present when Dobby was around, the meal contained larger portions with three different sauces. Once the meal was done, Harry brought in a couple of cakes and fruits covered in a chocolate sauce. Ron's eyes nearly bulged out of his sockets as he dug into the cakes.

"You know Harry", Hermione said while delicately eating her piece of cake like it might explode, "You'll have to be careful how much of this you prepare, or we'll never fit into our wedding gowns." Ginny snorted a reply warning Hermione to keep away from her deserts.

The couples talked a bit more before the subject turned to Harry's door.

Hermione spoke up, "Harry, I was able to decipher most of the runes. To open the door, the requester must meet three criteria. The door seems to have been imbued with some intelligence, from what I gather, just not at the same level as the sorting hat. It appears that only a descendant of Gryffindor may open the door. This is usually done through a blood test, kind of standard to testing family background. The second will require a pledge to protect the name and honor, similar to a life debt, and third is a bit of a mystery, but I think has something to do about giving up something that was hard to obtain, although I am not sure exactly. Anyways, the first step is to approach the door, say your full name and request the door open for you."

As everything sunk in, Harry quickly made up his mind to try right away. The couples made there way down to the lower levels. The passage was wet and slippery with all the rain that was coming down outside. As they approached the door, Harry lit the area by casting 'lumos maximus'. Harry then stepped away from his friends and came up to the door.

"I am Harry James Potter and I want entry!" trying to speak in what he thought was the way they back when.

As Hermione predicted, a small pin appeared over one of the runes, which Harry made out to be a small bowl. Instinctively, Harry put his hand on the pin and over the bowl, and allowed himself to be pricked. A small amount of blood dropped into the bowl and sizzled. Harry stepped away from the door as the smoke from the blood coalesced into a whispery form of a man. It spoke in an old English, the voice reverberating in the underground chamber.

"Your blood matches that which should be. Do you Harry James Potter, descendant of Godric Gryffindor, swear to uphold the family name?"

"I do."

"Harry James Potter, you must now give up something that you have worked hard to get, whether by defeating a powerful enemy, or from helping King and Country. This item must be the symbol of the menace you destroyed, where your bravery set you apart from the others. Touch the red symbol with your item "

Harry and his friends knew immediately what Harry would choose.

"Accio Voldemort's Wand" Harry's voice carried true, as this was what had started it all for Harry, causing the death of his parents, friends, and many innocents. The wand flew into Harry outstretched hand, and then touched the tip to the glowing Rune. He felt a sharp sting as a small electrical charged was sent through his hand; the the image of the ghost entered his mind, looking for confirmation on the item's importance, and Harry allowed it to read his thoughts, but restricted access to anything else. Then slowly, the door opened.

"Harry James Potter you and your friends may enter the Trophy room. Please set the wand down on the next available podium. You may now have access to this room whenever you require, but your three friends may not enter without you. The only restriction will be that none of your children may gain access until they in turn pass the following tests. Now, I am a simple guardian, programmed to record information, but if you have any questions, feel free to ask and I will answer to the best of my ability."

"Who was the last to enter an item?" Harry asked as he started to look around at the various items. Ron, Ginny and Hermione also entered and looked around.

"The last item entered was the Mirror of Souls, used by the Nag of Rum Island to capture Wizards during the war with Grindelwald. Lord William Augustus Potter entered it in the year of 1945. By the way, I need to know the date of every transaction and that information was not available to me when I retrieved the information out of you? You seemed to be able to 'curtail' my probing"

Not even acknowledging the remarks, Harry answered, "Nineteen ninety nine. Does each item carry the information about who brought them in, and when?

"Of course. If you would just place your wand on its podium, the information will then become available to the next generation to read about it."

Harry and friends went around the room looking at the various magic items, listening at the various reasons they had been placed in it. They spent a few hours looking around, and although it was getting quite late, no one seemed to mind. Hermione was looking at a large spell book that was once owned by an ancient Greek Wizard, wishing she could remove it to read in depth. Once the items had all been looked at, Harry noticed a small door leading out the back of the room.

"Where does this lead?"

"That leads to the Treasure Room. During the last Goblin Rebellion, most of the treasures from expeditions were placed in there, as the banks were deemed unsafe. The room before was the Preparation Room where the equipment for the expeditions was placed."

"Can we go look?"

"Of course, you now own all of this. Any item, except for those placed on the podium may be used. Any item you wish may be placed within the Treasure Room also, with the only exception of any evil item. Those must be sacrificed to the room, as it uses the magic to keep this room protected. Also, there is a portal in the chamber that may be activated by touching the letters that spell your first name. Once activated for the first time, you must give it a password. You may change the password anytime after that by spelling your name again and saying the new password. Of course, anyone knowing the password, which you will give it, will have access to both the Preparation Room and Treasure Room, but not the Trophy room; so be careful whom you give it to. I will be able to describe each item that you look at, as your ancestors enchanted most of the items, and described the rest."

Harry and friends followed the corridor to a small room, similar to the Quidditch changing room at Hogwarts. There they saw swords in scabbards, rope, backpacks, boots, cloaks, rods, staffs, armor, bows and arrows, keys, all sorts of items that may be used. Besides the room was an archway encrusted with gems, with tiny letters underneath each one. Harry went over and spelled his first name using his wand, then spoke the words James and Lilly. The gems flashed and the portal opened. The group were staring at one of the rooms on the main floor that was being used now as a sort of storage space for everything that Harry and Ginny didn't need right away. Soon the portal closed and everyone was staring at the blank wall.

"That was pretty cool Harry," Ron spoke.

"Now I guess we know what that room was for. It must have been used as the gathering place or maybe a 'war room'. No wonder it held up through the years better then most." This came from Ginny.

The group now approached the pair of heavy oak doors. They must have been counterbalanced, because Harry pushed them open easily. What they were greeted with nearly knocked all four onto their backside. The room must have been about fifty feet by fifty feet, with mounds of gold thrown everywhere, chests bulging with gems and jewels, gold armor and weapons made just for show, magic items, books of all sort, and maps. This was just too much for all four as they all rushed to see: Hermione going to the pile of books, Ron going to the Gold suit of armor, and Harry and Ginny going to a pair of his and hers crown resting on a shelf.

The Ghost spoke up as each touched different items, "That belonged to King Arthur and Lady Guinevere. The suit of armor was a gift from King Richard "The Lionhearted" to Lord Henry after his rescue from the witches of Nurn. The books, my dear, have been collected through the ages, going back to priest of Babylon. I would recommend that they never leave as this place keeps them from aging, plus the knowledge they contain could be very dangerous."

A few hours later, the group left the chamber and used the portal to go back upstairs. Once the portal had closed, only the trained eye could spot the faint outline of it. "Harry", Ginny asked, "I think you should change the password to one that people will find hard to break.

"Good idea." After a few minutes, "How about 'I love Voldemort'?"

The group agreed, and the password was changed. Harry asked Hermione if she could look at the possibility of creating another portal to Grimmauld Place, as it is the meeting place of the Order and would make it convenient if items were needed for different situations. She agreed to look into it. The couples split up and went their separate ways. Ginny and Harry went up and talked about the days events, promising themselves to spend more time the next evening to go over what he had. They also discussed transferring the valuables like gems and jewelry to Gringotts. The night passed quietly as both dreamt of the treasures they had found.

The next few weeks had both Ginny and Harry working on the house during the day, and organizing the Treasure Room. Harry had gone down to Gringotts to make arrangements to have most of the valuables transferred to them via a special Portkey so as to avoid going through the front door with a wheelbarrow full of gold and gems. They kept some 'loose' change in the 'Basement Vault' as they had come to call it, just in case of emergency.

Hermione did manage to start on the portal, but was having a few difficulties. On their first attempt, they through in a watermelon, which ended up on the other side inside out. Hermione went back to the drawing board. Also during this time, Mr. Evans arrived with news that the Queen would receive them for a small meeting before her afternoon tea which a ceremony into itself. Harry and Ginny prepared themselves to visit the Queen; Harry decided to offer the queen the pair of jewel-encrusted crowns that they had found to put in the Royal museum. Dressed very conservatively, the couple accompanied with Mr. Evans took a limousine outside of the Leaky Cauldron up to Buckingham Palace. Harry and Ginny were very nervous when they met her, but once she started to talk about Harry's great grandfather, the tension was eased. Harry presented her the matching crowns for the museum; he was amused at the slightest hint of shock the Queen let out from behind her iron curtain of emotions. She would have been good at Occlumency Harry thought. The meeting lasted al of thirty minutes, in which he received the Queens blessing at the marriage. Harry noticed one of the Queens entourage hand an envelope to Mr. Evans on their way out; it contained all the rules of marriage to ensure that the ceremony was done properly, in the eyes of the Court.

Harry and Ginny spent the rest of the week planning things out wit Mr. Evans and his daughter, who would help Ginny and the rest of the women with their part of the ceremony and clothing. On the weekend, Ginny told Harry that she felt a little overwhelmed with all the stuff that needed to be done for the wedding, and combined with the work being done on the house, she decided to go visit her mom for the day on Sunday. Harry agreed and contacted Remus and spent the day with him.

On the following week, while down in the 'Vault', he came across a miniature boat in a sealed bottle. He was told that it was magical and that if placed in the water and the activation word was uttered it would grow to full size version of itself. The nice thing about it is the ship was magically enchanted to also sail itself, with very few direction required from the captain. Harry decided that with his birthday coming up, he would like to go sailing. He took it upstairs to show Ginny.

A/N I have had this chapter written for over two weeks and had a lot of trouble cleaning it up. I decided that it was good enough and I can always come back later to clean it. I hope it doesn't hurt too many sensitive eyes.


	8. HMS Boreas

Disclaimer: Own nothing but a few Hobgoblins preparing to come out and play. More mature subject, reader discretion is advised. Thanks for the reviews.

HMS Boreas

Chapter 8

A large oval table filled a small room, with only a few candles burning, emitting small plumes of smoke that coalesced on the low hanging ceiling. Many Hobgoblins sat around the table, some discussing the weather, others discussing the upcoming plan, but most were wary of the one chair that needed to be filled: the chair from the House of Blood. When the Hobgoblins were sentenced to the Island, feuding erupted from the many factions, with each adopting their old ways of segregating into the many different houses. The House of Blood was the warrior group, named for their love of spilling enemy blood. Their leader was always the most vicious, and none were as vicious as Tanarak. He caused fear wherever he went, with the scalps of the foes he has killed pilled in what he calls his treasure room. The group knew of the fight between the brothers, but none knew that Tanarak feared no one but his brother. He knew his brother was both smarter and more cunning then himself, and that is why he always angry.

Tanarak was in the corridor leading to the room of gathering. He also knew that they would wait for him to enter before they started their discussion. He was angry that he could not find a way off the rock and needed his brothers help in doing so. What he wanted mostly was to leave this place and return to the home under the ground. He knew that whatever family he had left had died many centuries ago, and that maybe he would find peace again; he sometimes had a hard time understanding why they had gone to war, but that was forgotten. The killing of his own people, to satisfy that need for death, had always troubled him. It was a vicious circle: he felt bad, so he killed, but since he could only kill his own people, he felt worse. With a heavy sigh, he resigned himself to enter the chamber, catching the eye of one of his brother's servants smiling at the leader of the House of Blood as if he the leader had no choice. With a snap of his blade, the head came and blood sprayed everywhere, making everyone gasp as he entered.

"Brother, welcome to my humble chamber, please sit by my side so that we may begin the discussion," Without a hint of acknowledging the gruesome scene.

The meeting went on through out the night and into the next day. The preparations were set and they would meet by the ships at the break of dawn to prepare for their final voyage home.

­­­­­­­

Ginny was in the kitchen preparing herself an afternoon tea. Now that the outside was almost finished, Ginny had started on the hard work: interior decorating. Harry had made the comment of turning the whole place into a miniature Quidditch field, and Ginny loved it, but as things were, it was not very formal. Natalie, Mr. Evans daughter, had offered her services to help with getting things started. She said that her connection to both the Muggle and the Wizarding world made her a good choice, as she was not limited in what she could use. Ginny had invited her over after supper, to look at some of the possibilities. She had also convinced Hermione and her mom to come over. She heard Harry approaching, and at the speed of his steps, she could tell he was excited. It seemed to do the trick as the worries of decorating disappeared.

"Gin, take a look at this."

"That's a nice ship Harry."

"It's the HMS Boreas, sold to one of my ancestors by Lord Nelson after the ship was heavily damaged during fighting with the French. Says here she was a sixth class Frigate, but when sold in eighteen hundred and two, converted to a slop ship, then after the war of eighteen twelve in North America, she was converted to a 'pleasure' craft, which probably means they used it to hunt pirates in the Caribbean from what I could discern. I thought it would be cool to take for spin for my birthday. It says it can hold six couples plus the captain and his mate," Harry nudged her and winked "comfortably for over a month at a time. Her hull can handle between fifty to four hundred crewmen, depending on the set-up, plus hold fifty tons of goods, probably treasure. Her cruising speed is estimated at around ten knots, but has been known to hit fifteen knots with a good wind. Of course there are other modifications that might even make it go faster. I wanted to invite Ron and Hermione, Neville and Luna."

"I think that it would be a lot of fun, and it is your birthday. Do you think we could invite Natalie and her husband, I heard he was in the Navy, and he already knows about us 'Wizards'? Who else would you invite?"

"Natalie and her husband would be fine, and maybe her husband can teach us a few things. As for the other couple, I was actually thinking of inviting Remus and Tonks. When I went to visit him on Sunday, I noticed his placed looked a lot better, as if it had a woman's touch, plus some of the things around wthe house are definitely hers. I'm just not sure how to broach the subject, as he seemed not to talk much about it."

"Then just invite them individually. You call Remus and Neville, I'll call Tonks and Hermione, and Natalie is coming over tonight, so I'll ask her then."

Harry went up to his bedroom and used the floo network to contact both Remus then Neville. Remus was a little apprehensive about going with them, but since it was Harry's birthday, he agreed. Neville was a little harder to track, so he contacted St-Mungos. Neville's parents had been cured after the defeat of Voldemort, as their suffering were linked to him, but even so, St-Mungos always kept in touch with them, and so they would know where he went. "Hello Mr. Potter, yes we know where they are. Now normally we would not divulge this type of information, but in your case, you may reach them at their summer home in Scotland. Just say 'Longbottom Summer Home'." Harry thanked the man, and called Neville.

"Hey Neville, how are you doing?"

"Great so far, what's up?"

"I was wondering if you and Luna would join us for a short trip on a ship I just inherited for my birthday. Maybe just a week or ten days at most, unless of course everyone is seasick then we'll shorten it. What do you think?"

"I know Luna would love it, as that's one of the few things she's not done, and she's always looking at the ships going by. That would be fine by me. Where do you want to launch from?"

"Never thought of that."

"How deep of water do you need?"

"Doesn't say."

"Harry, where is this ship?"

"In a bottle, see."

"Wow, that's a big ship at least a hundred feet long if not more. If you want, we can launch that from our place?"

"Really, that would be great. Where are you anyways?"

"Our summer home is on the north coast of Scotland, near Crosskirk. If you floo over to a place called 'The Flying Fish', I can meet you there and we can go back to my place, just give me a time."

"How about Wednesday five o'clock? We can eat something and make our way to your place. We can let the boat out at night and cast our cloaking charms on it so that we are ready to go that morning."

"Sounds good to me, see you then."

Harry went back down and met both Ginny and Dobby who were getting the evening meal ready.

"So, did you reach them?" asked Ginny.

"I certainly did, and they will join us. Neville offered us his dock at there summer home in northern Scotland as a launching point. How about you?"

"When talking to Tonks, she wasn't all that that thrilled about going on the boat and all, but then I told her Remus might be going she agreed readily. Hermione was also a bit skeptical about the whole thing too, but figured they did need some time off and this would be relaxing. So now we need to brush up on our navigation skill."

"May you need a cook too? Dobby would be willing to cook for all of Master Harry's friends."

"I forgot about that. That's a good idea Dobby; you will need to get the provisions ahead of time. We could store them at the Longbottom's home before leaving."

They quickly ate, and then Ginny went to prepare to greet Natalie. While the girls spent the next few hours with some of the wedding preparations, Harry and Ron went out to practice some Quidditch. Ron was a little rusted, but even if he'd been at the top of game, he was no match for Harry. They worked up quite a sweat and stopped at the local pub for some refreshments. After a few drinks, Harry thought it might be safe to return to the house and not be subject to too much 'girl' stuff. When they arrived, the girls had just finished up; Hermione was waiting for Ron and they both left right away. Ginny and Natalie were discussing the upcoming trip.

"Harry, Natalie is telling me that her husband Richard would love to teach us about ships and that."

"That's right, Richard is still a bit nervous about our world, but it would do wonders to get him familiar through a trip on a ship. I appreciate the offer, and if possible, we can set-up a night out on the town where you would be able to meet him. He will be back in town by the weekend, and I'm sure a week on land will be too much for him."

"That would great. Just let us know and we will be there."

With that, Natalie left, leaving the couple to retire for night in their bedroom.

The next few days followed the same pattern of house repairs, but it soon came apparent that the house was complete, and that all the repairs were complete, and that all the spells to keep it that way were done. Harry decided that he could do to read up about seamanship, so he went about gathering information, mainly from his own well-stocked library. Hermione had taken it upon herself to ensure the library was as full as possible. The Vault helped out with a few old navel books. They received an owl from Natalie inviting them to dinner in London. It was near the river and catered mainly to Navy types. They accepted the invitation and met the couple that evening. Although the building looked a little run down, and area had the smell of fish, all that changed once they entered the premises. Natalie and Richard had just arrived and were standing near the bar. Harry and Ginny joined them.

"Harry, Ginny, this is my husband Richard; Richard this is Harry and Ginny."

"Pleasure to meet you at last Harry. Natalie has filled me in on some of your 'adventures'. I reserved a booth to get a bit more privacy, if that is ok with you?"

"That would be fine. This is a beautiful restaurant; I can almost feel the history."

"History it certainly has; going back to before Lord Nelson led the battle group against the French. Natalie tells me you are an athlete of some sort, Quidditch I think it is. I have never seen the sport, but Natalie tells me it's quite exciting, and very dangerous. Anything like Rugby?"

"I don't know much about Rugby, although I did see a few matches while living with my Aunt, but I would have to say that it is a bit less physical then that, and a lot faster. The level of play is such that speeds of fifty to sixty miles an hour is common. Like all sports though, it is more fun participating then watching, although I don't see myself going up against some of those Australian players in Rugby."

"I imagine not, but then they could probably not see themselves flying around neither. Now sixty miles an hour seems a bit fast don't you think? I'd love to see it some day, if that would be possible? Now about your trip you are planning, Natalie and I would love to go with you. I have done a bit of research, more as a refresher since it has been a few years since I've been on that type of ship. In my cadet training we spent the better part of three months aboard frigate about the same size as this one. Now I assume that I will not be able to tell anyone about this trip."

"Actually, you won't even be able to take pictures, as it will require 'special' film to get any type of picture, but don't worry, you will have some have pictures. So why don't we order and you can tell me what we will need for this trip to work."

The meal went late into the night, with Harry getting all the information of what he will need. He made a mental note to thank Ginny for thinking of a scribing spell cast to make sure that everything said would be recorded back home. Richard was quite resourceful, and Harry and Ginny made a note to invite them over for a bite. It was unfortunate that Harry had to cast a memory charm on him; this way he could talk about his experience with the group, but would not bring it up outside of the group. Ginny did tell Natalie that it was part of the deal to invite a muggle into the group. Time would tell if they could allow him to broaden his horizon within the wizarding community.

They met Richard a few more times to work on the trip and what was needed to know to captain a ship that size. Harry was grateful for the information, for even if the ship ran its self, you never knew when things needed to be done by wand. The Wednesday approached and Harry had plans to have Natalie and Richard come to his house before departing for 'The Flying Fish'. As conventional means were not present to reach the Potter Residence, and Richard could not travel through the floo network, Harry had Natalie use a broom and an invisibility cloak to get up. When Richard arrived he was flabbergasted at the size of the manor. Harry noted that he seemed to have enjoyed the ride up.

"Harry, you say this is a family residence. It could almost compete withany castle in Europe. It didn't look like much on the outside, but this is amazing. Now, it came to me while we were flying up, that we would not be able to travel by broom all the way to Scotland. How do you propose to get us there?"

"First of all, broom travel is possible over great distances, but not very comfortably.Do you have all your stuff?"

"Yes, we were able to pack everything in this. Natalie kept on adding clothes, almost a months worth, but once she closed the lid, it shrunk down to this size." Richard was holding a palm-sized chest.

"Well Richard, they say that if the chest is bigger then the hand, its just a waste. Now for the travel problem, I have here an armband magic inducer. It will allow you to do some of the things a wizard can do, like use the floo, fly a broom, and a few other minor things like seeing things that were normally not apparent, like the outside of my home looks completely run down to all Muggles due to the spell cast on it. Anyways, let's just say that you should be fine, although I suggest you change out of what you are wearing, maybe put on some robes. We don't want you stick out too much."

Harry summoned some robes for Richard who just placed it over his own. Harry explained how the floo worked; joking with them about the first time he used and ended up in the wrong place. The couple left and arrived at 'The Flying Fish'. Ron and Hermione had already arrived and were sitting at the table waiting with Neville and Luna. Remus arrived next, with Tonks not long after. The look they both had upon seeing each other was good enough to take a picture, and soon they both sat down together with the group. Food was ordered and the couples quickly ate, talking and filling in on some of the things they had done so far this summer.

The walk back to Neville's place took about half an hour. When they arrived, they found Dobby in the middle of preparing all the cargo that needed to go onto the ship. Once on the property, they dug out their brooms where Natalie and Harry were trying to teach Richard how to fly. They started off by tying the broom to a twenty-foot rope so that he could not fly off. Within an hour, he was able to maintain good enough control of the broom that the rope was removed.

When night arrived, Harry went out on the magically enhanced dock and took out the boat. He placed the bottle in the water and cast the release spell. The bottle slowly started to shake, then the ship 'popped' out of the bottle and started to expand. Within a minute, the ship had grown to its full size. A minute after that, crew started to come out of the hold, stretching and yawning as if asleep. Soon, an old man looking a lot like Moody, with peg leg and all, stepped up to the side of the ship; "I am Captain Lucky Peg Leg, at your service. And who might you be sir?"

"The name is Harry Potter." Harry went and introduced his friends and Ginny. He then motioned to the captain where all the supplies were. The captain had the gangplank lowered and had the quartermaster send some of the hand to fetch the supplies. The captain explained that they also had a cook aboard, but as Harry explained they had a House Elf, the Captain nodded and told him it would probably be better that way, as their cokk was "too heavy on the beans" and such. Harry and Hermione started on the concealment charms while Ron, Ginny and Dobby set up the kitchen and the sleeping quarters. The rooms had been magically enhanced to include a large king size bed, and its own privy and working shower. Once the ship was prepared. They all went back to the house to sleep. Harry had found Richard walking among the crew, his uniform back on, inspecting the ship. Upon seeing Harry, he gave him a big thank you and went down to his quarters to sleep. While everyone slept in the house, Richard and Natalie decide to stay on the ship.

The next morning, everyone was awake before the break of dawn. Harry found it strange that Neville was a little grumpy, until Luna pointed out that he had been unable to cast a large enough silencing charm on the walls to his bedroom. When Ron asked why that was needed, Luna replied that Harry and Ginny were quite vocal in their sleep. Harry and Ginny left for the ship, blushing deeply, before things got out of hand. Hermione made a note of working with Neville to strengthen his charm. Breakfast was quickly eaten and everyone boarded the ship. The wind had picked up a little, allowing the ship to easily slip out into the sea. Captain Lucky Peg Leg had the crew working hard. Harry decided to have a chat with the Captain about how things worked on the ship, and where the crew came from.

Once the group had all sat down in the officers' mess, the Captain started; "most of the crew where from the original ship during the battle with the 'Frenchies'; unfortunately, we all died, except for a Lieutenant Potter. Before the final battle, I was in my quarters on death's row, and he asked us how badly we wanted to win, and when the crew replied that we would come back from the dead to help, Lieutenant Potter made us a pledge; for as long as we wanted to serve for the goodness of King and Country, we would be allowed to do our favorite thing: sail. Some would say that it was unfortunate that we died, but all of us believe that to 'work to live' is wrong, and that we 'live to work', even after death. After the battle, Lord Potter purchased the ship from Lord Nelson, and we went to the New Colonies to fight off the invasion into British Territory by the Yanks. After that, we went out a few more times down south in Carribean, but it has been a long time since we've been able to set to sea. Of course we don't understand time anymore, but it is good to be at sea again. The last time we sailed was back in about 1946, when we were asked to help out a fellow ship that had had sunk near Hait, it was the Bluenose. It was an unfortunate thing to happen to such a beautiful ship. We raced her once about ten years before in 1936, but she was much to quick for us and the rest of the competition. We arrived to late to help, being much slower then the rest of the ships around. There was also a war that was just finishing up and I guess our time had passed. Well, I hope that gave you the information you were looking for. If you want, a log of all our trips is kept in the chart room. Now if you will excuse me, I need to check on our progress."

The rest of he day passed along hectically, letting everyone get used to the roll of the ship, and never straying too far from land. Although the ship was magical, it still required much work. Luna, Natalie and Hermione tended to stay out of the way of the crew, Ginny and Neville decided to work the deck with the deck hands. Harry and Ron worked in the sails, and Richard stayed on the rear quarterdeck with the Captain, discussing navigation and seamanship. The couples shared a quiet evening meal before retiring early, with Hermione and Natalie complaining of a queasy stomach. Harry and Ginny spent some time in the navigational chart room planning their trip. They decided to go towards the Outer Islands, then Northwest towards the Faroe Islands, and then back to Scotland, or maybe Ireland, if things went well. Ginny and Harry finally retired to their cabin. Once the door was closed, both Hermione and Neville caught themselves casting silencing charms on Harry's room. Hermione laughed; "Maybe someone should tell them to keep it down?"

"Not me. Remember how upset he was when we asked him to keep quiet when he was in the shower; he came out stark naked and dripping wet and stunned us all. When we came to, he had gone back to the showers and kept signing."

"And it might be just a phase too, although I doubt it."

Content that they did not want to mess with Harry and Ginny, they both cast their charms just as the moans started to creep through the wall. Both smiled and went back to their respective rooms. In the Captain's cabin, Harry smiled as he felt the charms being put up.

Back on Hobgoblin Island, it took all day to load all the ships with every Hobgoblin and enough food to make it back to shore. It had been too long since they've been on the mainland that they were not able to Disparate the group. It was decided that they would all leave together. The fleet would be made with the warrior factions running the sides in a V pattern. The cargo ships would run last as they were the least reliable. The leader of the houses were on the lead ship, at what would be the point of the V. They were the ones needed to guide the ships to the barrier; once at the barrier, they would proceed to the ceremony, timed with the height of the Black Moon. They arrived at the barrier with enough time for the preparation. This was a dark ritual, and most did not know that their chance for surviving the ceremony was quite low. This information was withheld from the group for they needed all the Houses to be present for the magic to work, and they knew that some of the House Leaders had grown lazy on the island.

The water around the ships had calmed down quite a bit, and thankfully for many, so had the rocking of the ships. Hobgoblins are earth creatures, living usually within the earth than on top of it, although Godric ensured they would adapt themselves. As the ceremony progressed, the wind picked up and waves started to break on the ships. Quickly, the tempo of the ritual increased, with the weather taking a turn for the worse. Soon, the waves crested over the ships, and the Hobgoblins scrambled quickly to get the water out by any means possible. With a clap of lightning, a huge waterspout shot into the air, and like a hammer, it started to attack the barrier. The barrier held for what seemed an eternity, but then cracks appeared and the water hammer increased its tempo. With a boom louder then a volcanoes explosion, the barrier collapsed. As the weather started to revert back to its docile state, the field of view showed many ships had been damaged or lost during the ferocious attack. Hundreds died, including many leaders from the different Houses; but most were left and soon the convoy started to head towards the mainland. Behind them, on the island that had been their home for over millennia, a volcano opened up and started to spew its lava, destroying what was left of the protective walls and huts.

­­­­­­­

Harry awoke with a jerk. His head pounding, and when he looked up he saw Ginny's eyes upon him from the ground; he had knocked her clear off the bed. With one hand on his head, he helped Ginny up.

"Are you ok Harry? What the bloody hell happened, knocking me on my backside like that? Harry, can you hear me?"

"Sorry love, but my head is aching, as if Gawp was using it as a Bludger. This feels bad, something's happened."

"I'll get everybody, but it's a wonder nobody heard you."

That took a bit of the edge off, "I'll explain that later."

Ginny quickly put on a robe and slippers and went off to get everyone. Dobby popped right in with a cup of hot cocoa, helping Harry put on his robe and slippers. Dobby always seemed to know what Harry needed. Harry walked out of his room and into the chart room, which seemed like a good place to talk. Everyone met him there, still blurry eyed but coming around quickly. Dobby had also prepared some coffee, tea and hot cocoa for those who needed it. The ship rocked slightly as everyone wondered what had happened to Harry. The first to speak up was Remus.

"Harry, what's going on? Your eyes are bright and practically glowing. You haven't been like this since the battle with Voldemort."

"I'm not sure. It just felt as if an evil power just came into existence, out of thin air. I saw visions of some sort of hammer made of water, battering down a shield spell, or something like that, then I saw this creature that I did not recognize. It cast a spell at me, one that I never saw before; it seemed to burn me and that's when I woke up. That's all I know."

"We'll at least its not Voldemort", answered Ron.

"I remember when I was unconscious after the Quidditch final that Sirius visited me. He told me that some great evil would be coming back, or something of the sort."

"You saw Sirius and you told no one? Why not?", asked Remus

"I didn't think it was good to go around saying I saw dead people when I'm unconscious. Anyways, the fact remains he told me something was happening and something has. I'll send a message out to Severus and Minerva letting them know to be on the look out for anything. I'll also tell them where we are, or approximately where we are. So why don't we all go back to sleep and we'll figure what to do tomorrow."

"By-the-way Harry, Happy Birthday!" Exclaimed Hermione.

Everyone hugged him or shook his hand as they left the chart room, a little nervous about hearing something was amiss, but nonetheless going back to sleep to try and get a few more hours. That is everyone but Harry. He let Ginny go back to sleep, helping her by rubbing her feet, which always seemed to help her relax and go back to sleep. Once asleep, he went to a chair and opened up his journal to write down everything he remembered, including what Sirius had said the first time.

Dawn soon arrived, and its redness was not a good sign. Harry dressed quietly, and went up to the quarterdeck; Richard was already there. He handed Harry a cup of coffee, which Harry accepted gratefully. Then Richard spoke up.

"Something happen last night? I heard you guys gather around in the chart room, but didn't bother getting Natalie or I. She figured it had nothing to do with the ship and let it go. I wake up this morning to a bloody sun, and that does not bode well. Maybe you should fill me in on what is going on?"

"Didn't see the need to wake you up, andI apologize if I did. The reason we were up was I had had a nightmare of sorts."

"That's it?"

"You must realize that my nightmares are usually a bad sign, so maybe we keep an eye open."

"That and the fact we will have bad weather should make things interesting. What kind of nightmare?"

"Hard for you to understand, but Humans are not the only race that live on Earth. I'm sure you've seen Dobby, or at least heard of him; he's a House Elf, although he is free to go anywhere he pleases. There are all sorts of magical creatures out there, and in this particular case, I did not recognize it."

"Yes I have seen Dobby, and Natalie did explain it to me. Well, next time, let me know if I can help."

Soon, the smell of bacon and eggs made its way to the top deck and both Richard and Harry met the rest of the gang downstairs for breakfast. In the corner of the room sitting on a small table were a pile of presents with bows and ribbons. They all started to sing Happy Birthday, and then Harry was led to a chair where everyone proceeded to give him presents. The first he opened was from Ginny, who told him the second part would have to wait until tonight for him to open. Ron looked at him quizzically, "What is it Harry?"

"It's a thong Ron. You wear it."

"Oh, sorry I asked." Ron turned beat red and backed away from the group. Hermione smiled and walked up to Ron and whispered to him in his ear. He seemed to perk up, point towards Hermione, to which she nodded, and then smiled as if he had just found a missing present under the tree and it had his name on it. This exchange only took a few minutes, in which Harry had gotten through to Fred and George's present. Before anyone could say anything, or hide in the case of Ginny and Ron, the present exploded. A poem rang out about 'being blue without you'. When the smoke cleared, Harry held a bag of candies, but when he looked around, everyone else had turned blue, clothing and all. Ginny piped up, "Not this one again. It took almost a day to get everything back to normal. Harry, why aren't you affected? I didn't notice you putting up a shield of any sort."

"I don't know, I just knew something was going to happen and I did it."

Tonks and Remus shared a look, then without blinking, both cast stunners at Harry's back before anyone else could react. Without turning around, both spells were repelled, with one actually diverted back towards Tonks, who dodged out of the way. Harry hadn't even flinched, actually apologizing to Tonks for the lack of control on his part.

"Harry, you haven't been able to do that since the battle with Voldermort," noted Hermione.

Richard and Natalie just stared at Harry, and although Richard did not know what exactly had happened, he knew magic (although just a little), he knew he was blue like the rest of them, he knew Remus and Tonks had cast something at Harry, and Harry reppeled it without thought. Whispering to Natalie, "Can you do that?"

Natalie just shook her head, but Ginny answered, "Only Dumbledore, Voldemort, and Harry could have shook those spells off that easily; except that after the battle, Harry sort of stopped being so powerful. Harry, when did you notice the change?"

"Actually, this is the first time since the last battle have I felt like this. Remember the feeling of electricity I told you about, the feeling as if I had just walked a carpet in my socks and was ready to zap someone, its back. I wounder if..." Just then, Harry transformed into a Phoenix.

Richard and Natalie, never having seen or heard of this, just stared at the phoenix with the blank stare of 'a deer in headlights'. Richard mumbled a question about what type of bird that was, and it seemed to have green eyes and, where did Harry go. Natalie told him what it was, and that it was Harry. Richard just replied with an O.

Harry returned to his human form and grabbed the chair for support, "That still takes a lot out of me, as when I changed into the first time."

Remus sat down. "Harry, do you know what this means?"

"I think it means that my powers increase when danger is around."

"Not just danger," Remus replied, "but pure evil. There is always danger in the world, but maybe it takes pure evil to make it transform."

Just then, a crew member came down, looking at everyone with a question of why everyone was blue and keeping it to himself. He turned to Harry, who he noted was not blue, "Sir, the Captain needs to see you on deck."

"Thank you." Harry was about to follow, when, remembering the twins present, flicked his wand at the group and dispelled the magic dye, also causingTonks to revert to her true form, which was not far off from her normal state, except for ruffled looking brown hai,and an odd mark on her forearm. It just took a blink of an eye to revert, but she gave Harry a stare that made him hurry up the stairs. "I'll get you for that Harry!" she yelled at him.

Up on the deck, most of the men were looking straight at the front the ship.He walked over to the Captain, who was looking through a telescope. He noticed Harry beside him and handed him the telescope. Pointing almost dead straight he said, "Look down that way and tell me what you see."

"Looks like a lot of sails. Why, what seems to be the problem?"

Richard was looking into his own telescope, but without magical enhancements, he was unable to see it. One of the officers noticed this and handed his own over. Richard thanked the man, and looked through the enhanced telescope. "My Lord, those are very old ships, I mean very old."

The Captain came over to him, "How old would you estimate?"

"The design is strange, but I would have to say almost a thousand years old.They look like Viking Longboats, but a little different. They seem to be going much faster then those boats could have gone, and they seem to be heading towards the main land."

"Very good observation. I agree, these boats are old, but are magical in nature. Not in the same sense as us, but in the sense that these boats should not even be afloat let alone sailing at about seven knots. What would you like us to do, Sir?"

"We should investigate this."

"Yes sir!" Turning towards his first officer, he gave him the command for general quarters, and as the command was passed along at increasing decibel levels, the crew prepared for the unknown.

Without a word spoken, Harry looked towards his friends, each nodding in turn. They went off into separate direction, preparing the boat for the encounter with the unknown ships, but with a gut feeling it could be bad. Harry turned to Natalie, "Have you studied Ecto-Screens?"

"Not really my strongpoint, but I do know a little. Ecto is a insubstantial substance, if you can call it that, that exists between our world and the Ethereal world. Magic can be used to modify it to the casters will. That's abaout all I know."

"That is a very close example. What I want to do is encompass both you and Richard in an invisible bubble that will not be affected by any spells, charms or hexes from the outside. I will make it that a simple hex to disolve from the inside."

Looking towards her husband, who with the Captain, were giving out orders, she replied, "he won't like that, not being able to fight, but I guess he has no choice."

"Not unless he wants to stay in his room. This way he will get to watch."

Harry pointed to where they should be and watched her going to her husband. He did not look happy, angrily pointing a finger at Harry, but nontheless he went to where the spot Harry wanted them, mumbling about at least it had a good view point.

Harry summoned a blob of Ecto-Plasma, looking more like a blob of greenish smoke, then with a few flicks of his wands and a few spoken words, the ball of smoke turned into a hard opaque shell. Within a few seconds, the bubble went invisible and Harry turned towards the bow of the ship where off in the distance, the masts off all those ships were becoming visible.

After about fifteen minutes, the gang gathered down in the mess; Harry was enquiring about the preparations. Once that was all said and done, each went their separate ways to prepare and change. Most of them always carried Dragonhide garments, even on such a trip. Remus commented to Tonks that it was unfair that Harry and friends should be so prepared for life of combat at such an early age, but then conceded that they did a fine job of it. Soon, the group gathered back on the deck and prepared for the arrival. The group wuld spread themselves out amonst the crew so as to not draw to much attention. Only Harry, with Ginny by his side would do the talking. As they slowly moved towards the mass of ships, Ron muttered something about it taking so long.

A/N I am sorry for this taking so long, but the preparations for Christmas and the recovery took its toll. With the Con season staring soon, I will hopefully try to get as much done as possible.


End file.
